Eldritch Holiday (Creature of the Night)
by Dr Megalomania
Summary: There's something wrong with Happiness. Duo doesn't know what, and he's determined to find out. The rest of the Gundam Pilots tag along to make sure he doesn't get himself killed.
1. And this is how the message ran…

**Song**: Rocky Horror Picture Show – Science Fiction Double Feature

_Then something went wrong_

_For Fay Wray and King Kong_

_They got caught in a celluloid jam_

_Then at a deadly pace_

_It Came From Outer Space_

_And this is how the message ran..._

**Eldritch Holiday**

**By Dr Megalomania**

_But When Worlds Collide_

_Said George Pal to his bride_

_"I'm gonna give you some terrible thrills"_

* * *

**Prologue** – And this is how the message ran…

* * *

**To**: Prof-N-Matsumi

**From**: Mike Howard

**Subject**: Check in!

_Damnit, Mats. When I say check in, I mean more than just three times in six months. Call me. Howard._

* * *

**To**: Mike Howard

**From**: Prof-N-Matsumi

**Subject**: Re: Check in!

_Hi Howard, not much time. Just about to catch a flight. Am excited by Leighton's latest email. Call when I land._

* * *

**To**: Prof-N-Matsumi

**From**: Mike Howard

**Subject**: Re: Re: Check in!

_Mats. Planes don't take five days to land. Call me._

* * *

**To**: Mike Howard

**From**: Prof-N-Matsumi

**Subject**: Re: Re: Check in!

_Reception's awful here. Got my laptop hooked up to what I think is this town's only internet café. Can you believe it? Anyway, I'm fine. Just out in the sticks. Waiting on more information from Leighton. He's found something amazing. A meteorite crash landed just south of his lab and it sounds like its knocked something loose in the quarry he was working in._

_Can't wait to get clearance to check it out. Seriously interested in the chemicals they've picked up. And the meteorite! Got some interesting carvings on it. Doesn't sound like it's gonna be another colony fragment._

_He also sent me some weird tape. Got some kooky sounds on it, but I've only got a beat up old Walkman to play it on. Missing my lab now!_

_Enough work, how's you? How's the crew? Tell David that I don't miss his snoring._

* * *

**To**: Prof-N-Matsumi

**From**: Mike Howard

**Subject**: Re: Re: Check in!

_Mats – surely they have got some kind of phone system in place? Fine._

_Still working on that project? Duo would love to see some of those 'interesting carvings'. You know he's still nuts for it._

_David says he's not missing your sweaty feet either. I'm staying out of it. Crew's doing great, got a sweet gig with the preventers at the moment – salvaging some old MS from the bottom of the Atlantic. Fun times. Gotta say, I can do without the ex-Alliance Preventers teasing the ex-OZ Preventers about the holes in their ex-MS… Making things a little tense around here._

_You get back to me soon, you hear me? I'll be a whole lot less tense when I know you've set up somewhere good._

* * *

**To**: Prof-N-Matsumi

**From**: Mike Howard

**Subject**: Re: Re: Check in!

_Sweetheart. I'm sure those pictographs are fascinating. But seriously, will it kill you to pick up a phone and call me? Tell you what, give me a number I can try and I'll call, leave you a message and then you can get back to me? How's that sound, Mats?_

* * *

**To**: Prof-N-Matsumi

**From**: Mike Howard

**Subject**: Re: Re: Check in!

_Mats. Call me._

* * *

**To**: Prof-N-Matsumi

**From**: Mike Howard

**Subject**: Re: Re: Check in!

_Mats, send me your location._

* * *

**To**: Prof-N-Matsumi

**From**: Mike Howard

**Subject**: Re: Re: Check in!

_Mats, don't make me call in the Dogs. You got one more day._

* * *

**To**: Mike Howard

**From**: Prof-N-Matsumi

**Subject**: Re: Re: Check in!

_Howard, honey, I'm fine! Don't worry, dropped off the map for a while, travelling around Happiness is like travelling through a blackhole. Damned place doesn't really do modern technology. Still waiting to hear from Leighton. Says he found a strange rock. He's going to meet me when I get to East Happiness. That's just two more days, they don't do shuttles in this county. Train travel is so old fashioned, it would be so much fun to sleep on one! Missing my bunk, Howard! Talk soon._

* * *

**To**: Prof-N-Matsumi

**From**: Mike Howard

**Subject**: Re: Re: Check in!

_We can put whole colonies in space; you'd think they'd scrub up places on earth. Damn it, Mats. I did a quick google of your location and it sounds like I might not hear from you for a while. Can you get this Leighton fella to contact me?_

* * *

**To**: Mike Howard

**From**:Prof-N-Matsumi

**Subject**: Re: Re: Check in!

_You're worrying, old man. I did ask, though. It might be a while. He's asked me to stay where I am at the moment – sounded super worried when I called. I think something's happened and he wants to verify it before he makes me travel any further. He's making it sound like it's something dangerous, probably some background radiation from the black rock or something._

* * *

**To**: Prof-N-Matsumi

**From**: Mike Howard

**Subject**: Re: Re: Check in!

_I am entitled to worry when a couple of days pass every time before you answer. I promised your daddy I'd keep an eye on you. So, what's going to happen now, kid?_

* * *

**To**: Mike Howard

**From**: Prof-N-Matsumi

**Subject**: Re: Re: Check in!

_Looks like it's too dangerous, I'm booking my tickets back home. Leighton's sent an email, he reckons the rock's actually just wreckage from a colony, he says I should just head home. I'm a bit crushed, but at least I got to experience the sea air around Happiness. I'll drop you another line before I get on a plane._

* * *

**To**: Prof-N-Matsumi

**From**: Mike Howard

**Subject**: Re: Re: Check in!

_Sorry to hear that, kid. I know you were excited. In all honesty though, Happiness looks like it needs flattening and rebuilding. The whole of the eastern side of the county just lost its electricity. And yes, I have been looking it up. I don't trust a place where you can't even street view it. Even the satellite images are blurry._

* * *

**To**:Prof-N-Matsumi

**From**: Mike Howard

**Subject**: Re: Re: Check in!

_Mats – guessing you've started travelling. Just wanted to warn you that there's a storm brewing. Looks like a big one. Get the hell out of there._

* * *

**To**: Mike Howard

**From**: Prof-N-Matsumi

**Subject**: Re: Re: Check in!

_Sorry it took so long to get back to you. Been super busy – Leighton changed his mind. Look. I might be getting into something over my head, but the sweepers taught me – balls to the walls, and all that. Leighton says he's found something interesting, and that he might have been wrong about the wreckage. Sounds like he needs a second opinion._

_Not likely to be dangerous, and I feel like an idiot just typing this, but civilisation in this area is sparse. You got me worrying – so stupid, it's not like this back-water place is plotting to take over the government with no reliable electricity._

_This place is weird, and the storm is weirder still._

_I'll be fine – don't worry!_

* * *

**To**: Prof-N-Matsumi

**From**: Mike Howard

**Subject**: Re: Re: Check in!

_Mats – Pulled a favour with the preventers, nearest outpost isn't what I call close, but they're going to keep an ear out for trouble. You've got some back up if you need it. I'm allowed to worry, what else is this old man going to do?_

* * *

**To**: Mike Howard

**From**: Prof-N-Matsumi

**Subject**: Re: Re: Check in!

**Attachments**:

_My daddy didn't raise an idiot. I'm getting a weird vibe. I know contact's been patchy, but I want to be absolutely sure. I'm attaching all my details and my travel itineraries._

_If you don't hear back from me within two weeks, maybe you could pull in more preventer favours and have them come look for me? I know you got my back and I'll owe you one if it turns out to be a stupid prank._

_Better safe than sorry, I guess._

* * *

**To**: Prof-N-Matsumi

**From**: Mike Howard

**Subject**: Re: Re: Check in!

_Don't worry, kid, I got your back. Even if it turns out to be nothing but an old man worrying._

* * *

**To**: Mike Howard

**From**: Prof-N-Matsumi

**Subject**: Re: Re: Check in!

_I am fine, old man. Do not worry. I have deviated from my original travel plans but cannot send you new details. I will contact you again. Tell David I do not miss his snorting._

* * *

Howard turned in his swivel chair and looked up. "And it looks like she sent that three nights ago." He tilted his head, "But that last one… that doesn't sound like Mats." He shook his head, and puffed on his old cigar for a long moment. "I just don't like it, and figured maybe I'd get you to take a look before I pulled in the Preventers proper." He gestured the screen loosely, "It just don't sound like her, man…"

"Howard," Duo's strange coloured eyes glowed with a manic pleasure, "That." He grinned broadly, "That is a trap!"


	2. Inside Something Bad's Awakened

**Disclaimer:** hahahahahahaha… I'm so old. You know the score.

**Notes:** I admit it, I'm British. I know nothing of America. Don't me. They got Trump and I got Brexit. I'm allowed to make shit up about places I've never been to - we can all let shit pass. You want to blame someone; blame Nightvale, Haven and Stephen King.

**Synopsis:** There's something wrong with Happiness. Duo doesn't know what, and he's determined to find out. The rest of the Gundam Pilots tag along to make sure he doesn't get himself killed.

**Song:** Lordi – The Kids Who Want To Play With The Dead

_Cause inside something bad's awakened _

_The evil opens it's eyes _

_The temper's rising and the house is shaking _

_To get out is no longer an option _

_These are the deeds of the beast _

* * *

**Eldritch Holiday**

**By Dr Megalomania**

* * *

_To get out is no longer an option _

_These are the deeds of the beast _

* * *

**Chapter 1** – Inside Something Bad's Awakened

* * *

**To**: Gen. Une

**From**: Capt. Maxwell

**Subject**: Pwetty Pwease!

**Attachments**: Adaline , MAXWELL D 02 –

_YOU WANTED AN EXCUSE TO SEND ME ON HOLIDAY. SEE ATTACHED! _

* * *

She took a moment to stare at the email. Slide her eyes off to the succulent plant on her desk, some cute thing that didn't look real. She had not yet killed the damned thing. She moved her eyes up to take in the young man in front of her. Something else she hadn't yet managed to get killed. His current demeanour almost made her regret that.

He was almost bouncing on his toes like the excited teenager he had never been allowed to be, barely able to keep the smile off his face. Dressed in his cleanest mechanic's uniform – pressed and ironed too - with a tie and button down shirt, he'd fixed his strange coloured eyes on a point just above her head, waiting – impatiently! – for her to finish reading.

General Une raised a hand to push her glasses further up her nose. He almost exploded, but she swiftly jabbed a finger in the air to stop him from speaking.

She glanced down at her desktop display and gestured through the pages of email between Duo's former supplier, Mike Howard, and Professor Naomi Matsumi. Une took a long breath in, and breathed it out in a slow, controlled manner. She looked up.

Duo was now knelt before her desk, his hands clasped on the edge of her desk as if in prayer, pressed hard against his lips. His eyes were bright, sparkling in the sunlight beaming through her office window. It sparked a memory from the early days of the preventers, five bright eyed boys with nothing else to learn.

She pursed her lips as he nodded eagerly, understanding exactly the image he was invoking with his posture.

General Une sighed again and raised a hand to pinch the bridge of her nose, "Maxwell." She ground out as if in pain, "This sounds like a trap."

"I know!" It was a high pitched, excited squeak from the man in front of her. He coughed, but it didn't bring down the pitch of his voice, "Right?" His eyes were suspiciously bright; he was clearly trying to contain the insane giggle that threatened to bubble out of him.

Une remained unmoved.

Duo coughed and stood. He clasped his hands behind his back and tried to assume a more formal demeanour. "Ahem, I mean." He pulled a concerned frown convincingly, "Yes, ma'am. I have concerns about the safety of Professor Matsumi."

Une rolled her eyes.

"What makes you think I'm going to send you in to a situation which is very clearly a trap?" Une spoke slowly as if she was speaking to a child. Duo's demeanour remained formal, though his lips quirked.

"While I fully recognise that Preventers have bigger missions to follow, I firmly believe that this situation cannot go uninvestigated. To that end…" He leant over to gesture his email to the forefront of her computer, "You'll note that I have also attached a log of the holiday I've taken in all the time I have been a preventer. I'm fully prepared to investigate this in my own time, at no cost to the Preventers."

Une rolled her eyes again and gestured her computer, "You attached a blank document."

Cracks appeared in his professional façade, "You are correct in noting that I have never taken a day's holiday since joining the preventers. In fact…" He looked off into the far distance, a hand on his hip, deliberately evoking the photo of Trieze she kept on the side. "Despite the blankness of the document, you can almost read the years of pure hearted dedication—"

"Don't push me, Maxwell." Une's lip curled.

"I just." Duo tried hard, but the smile cracked through. He put on a martyr's sadness. "I just. I just feel…" He crushed his fist against his heart, "I feel I owe Howard one. Naomi was just a few years older than me. He treated us all like his kids." He paused for a dramatic chance to look out the window wistfully. "And she was always there for him in the times when I couldn't be…"

Une picked up her coffee, glaring at him over the rim. "Maxwell, don't serve me the bullshit." She sipped slowly, and then gestured though the logs of emails between Howard and Matsumi. "What's this really about?"

He dropped all pretense of sincerity, his excitement back full force. "I have no idea what diabolical plan could possibly being put into motion, even as we speak… but!" He leant forward, and brought up a map of the areas the professor had last mentioned: Happiness.

Howard hadn't been joking about the place's lack of satellite presence. Even the preventer's live satellite image was unfocused.

"Happiness is so unusually unstable; nobody has been able to build a stable power complex or communication hub in it for over two hundred years. It is the last preserve of technophobes." He perched on the side of her desk, looking up as he gestured. "It's said if you listen to the radio in the area, tuned to the sub-bands, you can hear old gods mumbling…"

"You really want to find this Professor Matsumi?"

Duo blinked as if trying to remember what the conversation was about. He answered slowly, "Uh. Yes."

She stared at him.

He bit his lip.

She glared. "What?"

"… and maybe MiGos?"

Sourly, Une narrowed her eyes at him.

He grinned unconvincingly. "I mean maybe alien parasites from an alternative dimension Pluto?" His demeanour turned genuinely serious as he sniffed and nodded, looking away. "They got brain jars."

Une felt a nerve twitch under her eye. "You're talking about that quasi-occult-shit that Wufei hates."

He only smiled.

She let go of a breath and it sounded suspiciously like a growl, "I hate it too."

Duo waggled his eyebrows at her as his smile grew.

* * *

Trowa glanced up as Duo returned to work, dragging his tie off as he headed towards the locker room. He threw a brief glanced at Trowa and gave him a thumbs up. Trowa simply gave him a return thumbs up and got back to work. He had no idea what Duo had gone off to do in his 'Sunday best' uniform, but whatever it was had clearly yielded positive results. Trowa bent over his engine parts, reaching up to reposition the torch. It was not exactly delicate work but it was difficult. The salt water and sea vegetation had certainly damaged the circuit boards, rendering them almost unusable. Trowa smiled to himself, 'almost' was the key word. It brought him back to his childhood, in a weirdly positive way, the way that some gave up on these old mobile suits, but then not realising that there were people out there with the skills like he'd learnt with his troop. There were ways of bringing this MS to life, and that was why they were checking them out. He straightened and picked up his clipboard to make notes.

"How's Betsy today?" Duo asked, now changed into something more suitable for this kind of work. He leaned over the engine, and whistled. "Oh man, what, four hours of work to bring it back to full function?" He tilted his head and tapped a part, "But you could probably switch on the lights in about 10 minutes from the inside?"

"Yeah," Trowa nodded, "That would do it." He put down the clipboard and picked up a fine tool. He used it to point at the circuit board he was most concerned about. "I could probably get that up and fully running in two hours." He pointed to something else, "And then it's just—"

"A hop, skip and a jump really." Duo reached in and pulled out a component. "No wonder they were so slow, can you see the redundancies here?"

Trowa chuckled as he took the device, "Yes, one wonders why on earth they would put in so many redundancies so their MS didn't keep blowing up in their faces..."

"Hey, Ye Old Bastard only blew out a max of seventy times over the course of the war. I only have like three scars."

Trowa snorted, "Uh huh." He threw the device back to Duo.

"Won the war, didn't we?" Duo spun the device in his hands twice, doing something complicated and quick with a screwdriver, before putting it into a container.

"You have a point," Trowa replied as he bent over the engine again, "But I'm not sure it's a good one."

"Hah." Duo dove in next to him, dug about for a bit before sniffing and looking at the light. Trowa glanced up with him, and then turned to clip another light in.

"Ah, yeah, thanks man." Duo dove back into working, and resumed his quiet humming as he worked.

Trowa shook his head slightly, and resumed working as well. He was conscious his own lunch break was coming up and he wanted to make sure he got as much done here before he went. While they had worked in different departments before they transferred here together, Trowa had been relieved to find he'd been placed with Duo. They worked well together despite their differences. It felt a bit like home to him.

Trowa blinked as he felt his phone going in his pocket. Straightening up and stretching, he cleaned his hands off and was about to reach into his pocket to answer the call when it stopped. He shrugged and was about to go back to work, when his phone started again. Reaching in, he glanced at the screen. He sighed.

He saw Duo glance up from his own work, and Trowa shook his head. He answered the phone and stepped away from the MS they were working on.

* * *

Duo didn't catch much of Trowa's conversation but smiled as he realised who was on the other end. He watched as Trowa began pacing back and forth over the gangway hanging near the MS they were working on. Every time he passed, Trowa answered with "No", "Yes" or a simple and uncommitted "Uh huh". Duo shook his head lightly and went back to work. Trowa's partner worked in Records, in a mind-numbing data entry job. Duo had lasted all of 45 minutes in Records when he was first assigned. A TAC team with back up from Cyber Security had come down and removed him from his desk, destroying the computer he was working on and hauling him in front of General Une. The head of Records had been red faced and furious until Une had held up a hand and asked, "Did you give him something to do?"

After that, Une took sadistic pleasure in making sure every department head with whom Duo had ever been assigned to was made very well aware of the Maxwell Protocol. His current head of department, a grizzly woman (old when the wars started and yet somehow still strong enough to lay him out if necessary) had been very keen to make sure that Duo always had something to do.

Trowa passed him, "Uh huh."

Duo spun the screwdriver for a moment, considering if Trowa would like something to do. The MS project was fun; it was rather exciting to find out what kind of decisions had been made to make these machines. Schematics were fun, but nothing was as fun as actually getting in there and working with your bare dirty hands. Trowa's partner did not really get that.

Trowa passed him again, "Yes."

Duo shook his head, Trowa would probably say no to the trip. He thought about Wufei. Wufei would definitely say no. He thought about Heero and then immediately rolled his eyes. Heero would most certainly say no. Heero's recent - did four years still count as recent? - break up with Relena had done some damage to Heero's ability to have fun. He wasn't as spontaneous as he used to be, and that was saying something about the Perfect Soldier. Just work, working out with Duo every other morning - 5 am starts sucked, but Heero really enjoyed the quiet of the gym - and then bad movie night with Duo every other week. Duo presumed that Heero ate, slept and just went back to work whenever Duo couldn't see him. It was inevitable that he would get back with Relena; it was just a matter of time.

Trowa passed him again, "No."

That left Quatre. Duo did something simple with another component and it came apart in his hands, he rolled his eyes at how easy it was. Quatre could be persuaded, but Quatre was off world. Had been for years since he took up CEO of Winner Inc, but the visits earth-side had almost stopped entirely since Trowa and Quatre had broken up.

Trowa paused as he passed, bent over to look at what Duo was doing, "Hang on," he said to the phone, and then pressed it against his shoulder as he gestured with his other hand, "We don't need you to break it down that small."

Duo blinked and looked down at his hands. The component he'd been working on was in small orderly piles, screws and resistors piled neatly. "Oh yeah. Sorry, lost in thought."

"Uh huh." Trowa answered, straightening, "Looks like I'm heading out for lunch. Try not to strip the whole suit down to nuts and bolts without me."

"Have fun." Duo said, spinning the screwdriver again before doing something incredibly complicated with his hands.

Trowa was somehow left holding the screw driver, and Duo was walking away with the phone.

"Hey Jules!" He said as he walked away, "No, I'm Duo... no, I'm the other one. No, the OTHER one. Yeah, yeah... no, I'm the other one. Yeah, yeah. Yeah. You got it."

Trowa raised a dirty hand to pinch the bridge of his nose, "Duo, cut it out."

"You don't got it. Okay, no, I'm the one with the hair. No, no,nonono the one with the good hair. No, you're thinking of Becky. Yeah, Becky's the one who saved the- Yeah, yeah..." he walked back to Trowa, "You know what, never mind, here's Trowa." He grinned beautifully as he handed back the phone in exchange for his screwdriver, and took immense pleasure ducking the swat Trowa aimed for his head as Trowa walked away.

"No, he's not that one. You're thinking of Quatre." Trowa said, "No, honey, that's Wufei."

Duo bent back over his work, and reached up to reposition one of the lights. Mind now made up, he would contact Quatre about going to Happiness to find Professor Matsumi.

* * *

**End notes:**

So, like, what does one write at the end of chapters these days? I'm about 14 chapters ahead in this so-called 5 chapter thing. let's just say I'm having fun and writing through some things. you've been a great reader, 14/10 would love to have you stop by again.


	3. Your Last Chance

**Disclaimer:** hahahahahahaha… I'm so old. You know the score.

**Notes:** I admit it, I'm British. I know nothing of America. Don't me. They got Trump and I got Brexit. I'm allowed to make shit up about places I've never been to - we can all let shit pass. You want to blame someone; blame Nightvale, Haven and Stephen King.

**Synopsis:** There's something wrong with Happiness. Duo doesn't know what, and he's determined to find out. The rest of the Gundam Pilots tag along to make sure he doesn't get himself killed.

**Song:** Nicki Minaj – Starships

* * *

_Uh, let's go to the beach, each_

_Let's go get away_

_They say, what they gonna say?_

_Have a drink, clink, found the bud light_

_Bad bitches like me is hard to come by_

* * *

**Eldritch Holiday**

**By Dr Megalomania**

* * *

_Like it's your last chance_

_If you want more, more_

_Then here I am_

* * *

**Chapter 2 – Your Last Chance**

* * *

**To:**

**From:** Maxwelld

**Subject:** Holiday?

**Attachments:** Holiday

_going on holiday. need a break. want in? 02_

* * *

**To:** maxwelld

**From:**

**Subject:** Re: Holiday?

_Hi Duo,_

_You realise this is an un-monitored channel of communication and that the war is over and you can use more than ten words in a communication and your photo manipulation skills still haven't improved. Is that supposed to be me?_

_Despite all of this, sure. I'm taking a leave of absence from the company anyway. I'm in. Looks like an interesting experience, though I tried websearching it. Didn't get much in the way of hotels. Where are you thinking of staying?_

_I will be Earthside in 2 days. Want to go to dinner and talk it over?_

_Love,_

_Quatre_

* * *

"Thanks, this looks great." Duo smiled charmingly at the waiter as he placed down the steaming plate of spaghetti, the beautiful tomato sauce lovingly placed. He lent forward and inhaled the scent of the meat sauce.

"Been a while since you last ate something?" Quatre laughed quietly, he sipped on his wine before thanking the waiter for his own food. The Italian place was quiet, out of the way and familiar with Quatre enough to place the one of colonies' richest in a private booth.

Duo chewed on a bread stick. "Oh, you know what it's like. Us mechanics in Preventer Technical just eat the scraps that Active Division toss out."

"Uh huh." Quatre nodded with a deadpan expression, "Sure." He began eating, appreciating the fine meal. "So, how is Preventer Technical? Still enjoying the mechanic side of things?"

"Oh yeah," Duo nodded happily. "We've been stripping some old MS recently; Howard's been shipping some from the ocean floor. Some of them are encrusted with ocean life." He pulled his phone out, and found some images, "They look like old sea monsters!"

Quatre carefully took the phone and smiled as he flicked through the gallery. He paused on an image that showed Duo posing with Trowa and one of the murky looking suits. He stared at the image for a while, before handing back the phone. Duo glanced at the screen before slipping it away.

"Sorry." Duo said apologetically, his voice low.

Quatre picked up his napkin, dabbed at his lips before responding. "It's fine. It's not like he's dead." Quatre's smile was forced, "Just..." His eyes flicked down for a moment, for a long awkward moment he seemed to struggle with himself before rolling his eyes, and asking – totally nonchalantly – quietly, "How is he?"

"Happy, I think." Duo replied honestly, "He and Cathy moved recently, and he got a cat. Cath's working at a school. Him and me got a commendation for our work with the Mobile Suits Project." Duo paused for a sip of his wine, "He's dating this guy from Records."

"Sounds good." Quatre tried a better smile, it was no less forced. "I'm glad Cath's found a job she likes, I know she struggled with leaving L3."

Duo hummed for a moment, looking up. He shrugged as if coming to a decision. "The clerk's like a hundred and three years old in his soul, can't tell the difference between me, Heero and Wufei because Trowa won't let him meet us and smells of farts."

It was only thanks to years of practice that Quatre managed to avoid spitting his wine out. His eyes bulged and he carefully put down his wine glass as he swallowed quickly, and coughed for a moment. He glared accusingly at Duo, "His new beau does not smell like farts."

Duo spread his hands, "But you don't argue the age or the inability to tell three people apart."

"Well," Quatre put on an air of dismissiveness, speaking like it was obvious, "Trowa isn't known for his taste."

They collapsed into a shared laugh, and resumed eating. The meal passed quickly after that, and Duo handed over his phone again. "Here." He said, "Here's the email chain I mentioned."

"Is this going to end up with me finding another picture of my ex?"

"Uh..." Duo pretended to reach for the phone, "Mind the dick pics?"

Quatre flicked his eyes up to Duo, a brief flash of vague interest before flicking up a middle finger. He reached into a pocket and pulled out a small pair of reading glasses. Duo ordered coffee for them both, while Quatre read through the email chain.

Duo emptied a third sachet of sweetener into his black coffee when Quatre handed the phone back. "Well?"

Quatre took a moment, his eyes going distant as he pushed his glasses up to rest on his head. When he came back, he picked up his coffee. "Sounds like a trap and like it could get us killed." He paused and looked Duo in the eyes, "Like dead."

"Yes," Duo nodded as if it was totally acceptable, "Like totally dead."

"I'm one-hundred-percent definitely going to regret this." Quatre said, picking up his coffee musingly. "But what the hell, I'm two years into a break up I'm not quite over..." He sipped slowly. "You know it's affected me so much that I've had to take a leave of absence from work?"

Duo blinked, surprised. "I didn't."

"Yeah." Quatre nodded. "It's a bit shit really. So, yeah. Let's go." He nodded towards Duo's phone, "Sounds like a horrific trap, you and I could get into some japes and get caught up."

"Not worried about getting killed?"

Quatre's smile was sweet. "Counting on it." He sipped his coffee, "I could do with beating the shit of out something."

Duo's smile was sharp, "You don't think we'll get killed until we're dead from it?"

"Duo." Quatre put his coffee cup down, placing his chin in his hand and leaning his elbow on the table. It was a sweet image, ruined only by his cold look in his eyes. "I haven't felt this bad since my father died. I think it's time I did something monumentally stupid, and I can't think of anyone other than Shinigami to take me there."

Duo laced his hands and adopted a similar pose. "Not going to lie. This is kinda hot."

Quatre's laughter was long, loud and well worth disrupting the other patrons.

* * *

They stumbled into Quatre's hotel room some hours later – after the Italian restaurant, they'd gone to a cocktail bar and drank increasingly silly drinks with stupid names. Duo collapsed onto the sofa, while Quatre deftly weaved his way to the bed. He sat slowly on the edge and started pulling off his shoes. "This was fun, Duo…" He began saying, "I missed this."

"You're always so busy when you come to earth." Duo's hand appeared over the back of the sofa, and began conducting an invisible orchestra. "You gotta take some time off!"

"I am taking time off!" Quatre frowned, "I told you. I've taken leave from my company, and I'm gonna go on holiday with you to find Happiness."

"We're going to Happiness," Duo hauled himself up, "We're looking for Professor Matsumi and probably some aliens."

"Yeah, exactly what we're going to do." Quatre focused real hard on the other shoe. "And if some idiots come up to us, we're gonna fight them."

Duo leaned over the back sloppily, "You realise we're just a mechanic and a suit."

"A suit that—" Quatre abandoned the shoe, snapping his head up to glare at Duo with drunken fierceness. "A suit that works out every damn day!" He got up shakily, and yanked off his suit jacket, tie and unbuttoned his shirt as carefully as he could with 6 cocktails in him. Duo watched with fondness. Quatre finally pulled off his shirt, and stood in his slacks, left shoe on, and his vest. He was not slight, rather he was well built, muscles clear cut under pale skin.

Duo nodded with appreciation, "Uh huh. Totally more effective if you'd ripped your shirt off."

"Maybe…" Quatre conceded, one finger held up, before striking a pose to show off his biceps. "But I'm fucking gentle as well!"

The peal of laughter that rocked Duo almost sent the mechanic off the sofa. Quatre shook his head, and shuffled over to his suitcase to grab his laptop. He sat down on the sofa opposite Duo, and stretched his feet out over Duo's lap. The other former pilot started working on the knot on Quatre's left shoe while Quatre brought up a flight plan. "Do you want to fly private?"

"Nah," Duo stuck his tongue out, as he concentrated on the knot. "Let's fly commercial. That way, we can have the fun of making and missing the connections."

"You want to drive most of the way?" Quatre looked over the top of his laptop, "I mean I could get a helicopter."

"Nah. Road trip. You and me. Ah ha!" Duo worked the left shoe off and flung it over the back of the sofa. "We can travel the back roads; make it kinda super old fashion."

Quatre typed for a few moments, before pausing and then looking up. "Yeah," he said quietly, "Yeah… I'd love to do that. We could sleep in some hostels along the way…"

"Kinda like the old days?" Duo grinned lopsidedly, "You need out of your head. We're staying in the best places we can though." He raised his hands to gesture his no longer tidy braided hair. "Ain't the old days for this head of hair."

Quatre laughed, "Alright. Happiness looks like a flight deadzone anyway, we'd be driving at least three hours to get there from the nearest private air field."

"Sounds like we've got a plan coming together, Mr Winner."

"We do indeed, Mr Maxwell." Quatre grinned, "So tell me more about this thing that Professor Matsumi was looking for…"

* * *

**To:** Rashid

**From:**

**Subject:** You told me to get away from it all

**Attachments:** ,

_Hi Rashid,_

_As you can see from the travel plans document, I'm likely to be out of contact for a while. If you don't hear from me in a month's time, send everyone. I'm deadly serious. Everyone. Duo says hi by the way._

_Best,_

_Quatre_

* * *

**To:**

**From:** Rashid

**Subject:** Re: You told me to get away from it all

**Attachments:** ,

_Master Quatre,_

_I thought maybe you'd go somewhere nice, like Hawaii or Paris. Somewhere with a nice quiet place to read some books and drink some wine. Have you read the email chain you've sent me? It sounds like a trap. Are you sure this is a good idea?_

_Best,_

_Rashid_

* * *

**To:** Rashid

**From:**

**Subject:** Re: Re: You told me to get away from it all

I_t's a terrible idea. Of course it's a trap. I wish I brought fewer books and a few more guns. :)_

* * *

**Notes:**

Yes, yes, I did make that pterodactyl screech. That's what one does when one sees a reader like you. How is it possible you're as awesome as you are? You've been a great reader, a solid two thumbs up kinda person. Finger guns.


	4. My Odd Insanity

**Disclaimer**: hahahahahahaha… I'm so old. You know the score.

**Notes**: I admit it, I'm British. I know nothing of America. Don't me. They got Trump and I got Brexit. I'm allowed to make shit up about places I've never been to - we can all let shit pass. You want to blame someone; blame Nightvale, Haven and Stephen King.

**Synopsis**: There's something wrong with Happiness. Duo doesn't know what, and he's determined to find out. The rest of the Gundam Pilots tag along to make sure he doesn't get himself killed.

**Song**: Alice Cooper – Wake the Dead

* * *

_I just do the things I do, it's natural to me_

_There's no rhyme or reason for my odd insanity_

_You don't know what's going on inside of me_

_You don't wanna know what's going through my mind, yeah yeah yeah_

* * *

Eldritch Holiday

By Dr Megalomania

* * *

_You wake up every morning thinking everything's okay_

_But if by chance you walk my way you just may seal your fate_

* * *

**Chapter 3** – My Odd Insanity

* * *

"Any questions?"

There was a brief pause before Heero Yuy's hand shot up.

The general nodded to him, "Captain Yuy?" He smiled with bemusement, "You're normally first out the door post-mission debriefing. What's your question?"

Heero put down his tablet, and frowned, leaning forward so his low voice would be caught by the microphone. "I've been reading the potential candidates for this next mission, and note that Captain Maxwell isn't listed, I do recognise that Commander Nakwon is listed and, while I don't cast doubt on Nakwon's skill set, I know they are not on par with Captain Maxwell's competencies with the kind of communication arrays this team are due to meet during this mission. Is there a reason why Captain Maxwell isn't under consideration?"

"I can field that one." General Une leant forward, "Captain Maxwell will be unavailable for the mission. He has taken some personal time to…" Her lips pursed, her working like she was thinking something unpleasant. "Take a holiday and pursue something of interest to him."

There was a quiet ripple of chatter, mostly amused in the vast meeting room. The general chairing the meeting laughed. "A gundam taking holiday, Une?" He gestured the window, "Just in time for the flying pigs, eh?"

"I wish I was joking." General Une muttered, she cleared her throat and spoke up, "Unfortunately, for the foreseeable 30 days, we are destined to be one ex-Gundam Pilot down."

"Hmm. Is there any way we can persuade Captain Maxwell to put off his trip?" The general lifted his own tablet, gesturing through the mission briefing notes. "Captain Yuy is right that Maxwell would be better suited."

General Une glanced at the briefing notes, at Yuy and then at the general at the head of the table. "I'm afraid I cannot, sir. He's quite certain this is something he wants to do." She took a moment to adjust her glasses, "There's nothing we can do."

"I'm sure once we impress the importance of this mission on him, Captain Maxwell would reconsider."

Une laced her fingers together patiently, "I understand that, sir, but I must invoke Article 29b, paragraph 4, subsection 2a of the Preventers Conventions as I believe Captain Maxwell would rather pursue his interesting holiday."

Murmurs went around the table, while the general frowned and looked up the article in question. Heero blinked as he did the same. He was generally very familiar with most of the Articles in the Preventers Conventions – he'd been present for many written, but was less familiar with later amendments.

"Ah," The general said, sitting back, eyebrows raised. "Yes. Nakwon will do."

Heero finally found Article 29b, paragraph 4, subsection 2a of the Preventers Conventions. It simply read: _'The Maxwell Protocol: Former Gundam Pilot Duo Maxwell – designation Zero Two - must never be allowed to become bored and must always be given something to do to occupy his mind and hands.' _

He looked up and held his hand up in confusion. "Sir, I must protest. This… this amendment in the conventions is nonsense. Duo has a sense of honour and duty-"

"Captain Yuy, I recognise that you are unfamiliar with the article's amendments, but I've had enough crisis reports cross my desk which could have been easily solved if department heads simply adhered to the Maxwell Protocol." He addressed the rest of the room, "Any other business?"

* * *

Une wasn't surprised when she felt a hand touch her elbow; she excused herself from her conversation and turned to find Heero Yuy looking at her intently. "Afternoon, Yuy." She said dourly, "I guess Maxwell didn't tell you."

"We…" Heero frowned, annoyance in his voice, "We don't always get caught up immediately when I have been away."

She rolled his eyes, "I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't tell you…" She put a hand on her hip and gestured in a way that reminded him of Duo. "Can't stop him if you don't know." She pulled out her phone, and a few taps later, forwarded him the email Duo had sent her. She held up a hand, "Don't even begin to tell me. I know."

Heero's frown deepened as he read the email chain. "What… this sounds like a—"

"He knows, I know, and now you know. He's very excited to be going." Une shook her head, and she began to walk away, "Look, if you can convince him not to go, I'll be very grateful not to lose one of my best agents to what is the most obvious trap since New Edwards."

Heero's head snapped up. Une's smirk was sharp as she spread her hands apologetically, walking backwards away from him.

"What? Still too soon?"

* * *

He stewed about it for the rest of the day. Heero didn't normally feel so strongly about Duo's movements, but this hurt. That he'd had to find out about the holiday from someone else was bad, but to find out that Duo intended to head straight into something that sounded like a trap without him actually ground at his soul like crushed glass. He wondered why Duo hadn't called him. It wasn't like the other former pilot didn't have his number. It was only as he was exiting the lift on his way to reception area did it occur to him that telephones worked both ways. As he stepped out of Preventers Headquarters, Heero pulled up Duo's contact details and tapped the call button.

Duo picked up after three rings. "Sup?" There were some background noises, which Heero identified as street noise.

"It's Heero." Heero said, as he walked towards the bus stop. "Are you aware this sounds like a trap?"

"What does?"

"Your so called holiday."

"Oh, yeah, totally." Duo sounded distracted, "But you know. It's not like I get out very often."

"Can we at least talk about it?"

"About what?"

Heero paused mid-stride, raising a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose. He closed his eyes. "Duo, put whatever you are doing right now down." He waited; there was silence on the other end. "Have I got your full attention now?"

"Uh." There was the sound of a bag opening and closing. "Yes."

Heero opened his eyes. "About this trap that you appear to be going to throw yourself at?"

"Oh, yeah, no." Duo said, sounding more engaged with Heero. "I'm not going alone. I'm not stupid, dude."

"So is this a sanctioned Preventer mission masquerading as a holiday?" Heero felt relieved at the very thought. Maybe Une hadn't been able to-

"Nah. Une wouldn't let me go, so I took some holiday." There were voices in the background; Duo said "Hang on." before clearly holding the phone in a way that muffled the microphone. Heero could hear Duo's voice, and someone talking back to him but not what they were saying.

Heero waited patiently, walking slowly along the path.

"Hey, Yuy." Duo resumed, "Still there?"

"Yes." Heero paused and stepped out of the way of the pedestrians. He put a hand in his pocket, and watched the street. "Where are you?"

"Oh, Quatre's hotel. We're gonna meet for a late lunch."

"Quatre's earthside?" Heero frowned; he saw a break in the crowds and started walking again. "He usually calls us if he's going to be earth side."

"Yeah, well, you see I called him and he saw how much of a trap it was, so we decided we'd go together."

Heero stopped dead.

"Yo, you still there Yuy?"

Heero swallowed. "You're going with Quatre where?"

"To Happiness. We're gonna go hit it up and search for Professor Matsumi."

"Just the two of you."

"Hells to the yeah."

"Why…" Heero paused, staring up at the sky. "Why didn't you ask me?"

"My dude. Can't stop me if you don't know besides…" Duo said, as if explaining to a small child, "You would have said 'no fucking way, idiot'."

Heero started walking again, his stride taking on a clear purposeful movement. "Where is Quatre staying?"

"Opal. Why?"

"I'm coming."

"Oh cool, you know when you're gonna arrive? We were gonna have a late lunch."

"That's not what I mean, Duo." Heero ground out. "I'm coming with you."

* * *

When Heero got in, he spent some time disassembling his most recent mission bag. He set up a wash of clothing, and got in the shower himself. He washed his hair, and spent some time pottering around his home. He watered the plants, before sitting down at his desk and logging on. While his machine was booting, he reached into his mission bag and retrieved his trusty laptop and set it to charge. He went and got a coffee, and settled down in front of the computer.

He brought up a map of Happiness on one screen, the email chain on another, a profile of both Professor Matsumi and this Professor Leighton. On another screen, he brought up his old mission writing application and began inputting data. It soothed him to be doing something productive like this. He took all the information that Duo had given him, and glanced at his emails. Quatre had forwarded his itinerary to him. His coffee cooled, but it was still drinkable by the time he finished. He sat back and reviewed the mission as it was presented to him by Duo.

He pursed his lips.

It was a trap.

They were either going to die, or they'd have to call for back up.

He inputted some more data, this time potential alternatives. It was more favourable when he was in the mission. He did a bit more research into Happiness, and came to the conclusions that it would most likely be pirates. With the resources they were planning on taking and the route they would be taking, they would be vastly under prepared to meet with pirates.

Heero made a few gestures on the computer, and Quatre picked up the call a few moments later. Heero looked at the screen, Quatre smiled from the screen. "What's up?"

"Send me more details about your mission."

"It's a holiday." Quatre laughed. "We're just going on holiday!"

"Send me more details about your holiday."

Quatre sighed and set down his phone, "You know, you don't need to worry. It's probably not going to be anything."

"About that." Heero said dryly, "I've looked it up."

"Done your calculations and…" Quatre smiled knowingly, "Figured we – and I really mean Duo here - have a better chance of survival if you're there?"

"Yes."

"Of course." Quatre smiled and shook his head; he looked away and began typing. "Has nothing to do with the fact that Duo might do something stupid."

"Did you know about Article 29b, paragraph 4, subsection 2a?"

"Did I know what?" Quatre glanced at the screen in confusion.

"Article 29b, paragraph 4, subsection 2a in the Preventers Conventions." Heero sat back, "I'm going to get some coffee while you look it up."

When he got back, Quatre's incredulous laughter floated from the screen. Heero sank into his chair. He looked at the screen sternly. "It's not funny."

"It's fucking hilarious, Heero!" Quatre wiped at his eyes, taking a few deep breaths. "You mean to tell me, this is why Duo has 30 straight days of holiday and does not necessarily have to come back? He has a legal, international, intercolonial convention that specifically prevents him from being bored!" Quatre tipped his head back and laughed hard.

"Aren't you worried?"

"Are you kidding me?" Quatre shook his head, "I want to go even more now!" He made a few more gestures at the computer he was working on. "Here, I've sent you all the details I know and the attachments that Rashid has sent me. You've got everything now."

Heero nodded, before ending the call. He cupped his hands around his coffee, and gestured through the attachments he had.

* * *

**To**:Gen-Une

**CC**: ChangW, TrowaB

**From**: Yuy01

**Subject**: Holiday

**Attachments**: Holidayrequest_pdf, YUY H 01 – Days_pdf, emailchain_pdf

_Going with the idiots. Can't let them get themselves killed. _

**To**: Yuy01

**CC**: ChangW, TrowaB

**From**:Gen-Une

**Subject**: Re: Holiday

**Attachments**: Holidayrequest-approvedYUY_pdf, Holidayrequest-approvedBARTON_pdf, Holidayrequest-approvedCHANG_pdf

_Just don't get yourself killed._

* * *

**To**: Yuy01,

**CC**: TrowaB,Gen-Une

**From**: ChangW

**Subject**: Re: Re: Holiday

_Who the hell thinks this is a good idea? _

_Une – I haven't submitted a holiday request. Why am I pre-approved? I'm not going. This is obviously a trap. Why on earth would I go?_

* * *

**To**: ChangW

**CC**: TrowaB,Gen-Une

**From**: Yuy01

**Subject**: Re: Re: Holiday

_Duo and Quatre are going. Alone._

* * *

**To**: Yuy01,

**CC**: TrowaB, Gen-Une

**From**: ChangW

**Subject**: Re: Re: Holiday

_I just rolled my eyes so hard I almost passed out._

* * *

**To**: ChangW

**CC**: Yuy01,Gen-Une

**From**: TrowaB

**Subject**: Re: Re: Holiday

_What dumb fuckery is this?_

* * *

**_Author's Note:_** Please, don't mind me, sitting here just... I'm overcome really. It's a new chapter, you're here. I'm just grateful. Would you like a cuppa tea? I've just put the kettle on.


	5. Start a Fight

**Disclaimer**: hahahahahahaha… I'm so old. You know the score.

**Notes**: I admit it, I'm British. I know nothing of America. Don't me. They got Trump and I got Brexit. I'm allowed to make shit up about places I've never been to - we can all let shit pass. You want to blame someone; blame Nightvale, Haven and Stephen King.

**Synopsis**: There's something wrong with Happiness. Duo doesn't know what, and he's determined to find out. The rest of the Gundam Pilots tag along to make sure he doesn't get himself killed.

**Song**: P!nk – So What

* * *

_I got a brand new attitude_

_And I'm gonna wear it tonight_

_I wanna get in trouble_

_I wanna start a fight_

* * *

Creature of the Night (or Eldritch Holiday)

By Dr Megalomania

* * *

_What if this song's on the radio_

_Then somebody's gonna die_

_I'm gonna get in trouble_

* * *

Chapter 4 – Start A Fight

* * *

Trowa cut straight to it.

"Sounds like a dumb fucking trap."

The preventer café was a charming roof top operation; they'd met for lunch and were looking at the dessert menu.

Duo swallowed bitterly hot coffee and leant forward over the table with a manic grin.

"I know, right?" He motioned in a wide circle, "It's like the trappest trap you've ever seen. University Professor, hot on the heels of some mysterious rock that's fallen out of the skies, sends two messages: one's all—"

Here, he turned to Wufei,

"– 'if you don't hear from me, send help', the other's all like random dude deep voice," Duo grinned and lowered his voice comically, turning to Heero on the other side, "like 'do not send help, I am fine, and this is not a trap'… I know, right?!"

Trowa eyed him sourly, "Why are you so excited about it?"

Heero didn't even look up from the dessert menu, "It's pretty much the storyline from one of his horror movies."

"Which one?" Trowa asked and then shook his head, holding up a hand to prevent Duo from explaining. "No! No. You know what, it doesn't matter. You've already tricked Quatre into going."

Duo sat up straighter. "Well… You guys woulda said no. Quatre needs to get out of his head, so it's a great chance for us to catch up. You know? It's been such a long time since I went on holiday with him."

He picked up his phone and started flicking through his pictures.

"Hang on, wait... it's been such a long time… wait, maybe… nope. That's me and you at work. Nope. No." He smiled fondly and held up his phone, "Here's me and Heero in Bali… Oh no, wait that was a mission. Hang on… Here's one! Me and Wufei in Paris…"

He paused and frowned looking at his phone.

"Wait, wait that was a mission too." He frowned even more, "Huh, where'd I save all my holiday snaps?" He put his phone down with a hard snap, "Oh yeah, I don't have any!"

"Maybe if you took some holiday, and managed your downtime more effectively, perhaps you would have some photographs." Wufei sipped his tea, serenely. "Sally and I seem to manage to carve out some downtime during our missions."

"Well, maybe if I had someone who valued my friendship for more than just my usefulness in the field," He gestured Heero, "Maybe I would."

Heero swallowed his drink quickly so he could protest, "You are useful. It makes you a good travelling companion!"

"That's… that's not what I mean—You know what, never mind." Duo shrugged and held up his hands. "I don't see what the big deal is. Quatre and me, we're gonna be fine." He paused, his face lighting up with a big grin. "What's the worst that could happen?"

Heero picked up his drink again, shaking his head at Duo's obvious glee. "This isn't a horror movie. Saying that won't have any effect on what happens next."

"Besides," Trowa said, concern in his voice, "Quatre can't just up and leave his company."

"Uh, yes he can. He's the boss." Duo sat back, spreading his hands in a carefree gesture. "He's taking leave. Just like I'm taking leave."

"Of your senses." Wufei brought up his tablet. Happiness' terrible satellite photos looked even worse on the smaller screen. "You don't even know where you're going."

"We'll figure it out when we get there."

"I'm coming with you." Heero said, clearly and slowly, "I don't like the tone of the last email and I did some research. It's probably pirates."

"Suuuuper spooky, right? Probably pirates, nah! Aliens!" Duo waved him off. "We'll be fine. But heck, I'm sure Quatre will be fine with you tagging along."

"We're all going." Wufei rolled his eyes, "Une's given us all approval. As far as I can tell, she's running this like an op off the books."

Duo frowned, "Uh." He side eyed Trowa hard.

Trowa sipped his coffee. "What?"

"I mean, like, are you coming with?"

"Quatre and I broke up. It does not mean that I want to see him go missing in some backwater marsh because he's stupid enough to go on some dumb road trip with a wacko who can't see how big of a trap this is." Trowa put his cup down hard, annoyance building in his voice, "You'll need back up."

Duo leant back and tapped the table, "I mean, like huh. I wasn't exactly expecting you guys to want to come along."

"I don't want to see you hurt." Heero put his cup down again, and leant forward with an intent expression. "You're important to me."

Wufei rolled his eyes.

Trowa shrugged and leant back, "I only want to make sure you don't get Quatre killed."

Duo turned his attention to Wufei, when it was clear Wufei wasn't going to say anything, both Trowa and Heero looked expectantly at him as well.

Wufei rolled his eyes again, this time folding his arms and sinking down in his chair. "I'm just going because Une thinks it's bad for my mental health if I don't go with you all. She doesn't want me joining another evil organisation hell bent on taking over the world."

They looked at him incredulously.

"Too soon, my ass." He growled looking away from them. "Fucking Une."

* * *

Duo lay on Quatre's bed, upside down with his braid hanging over the edge of the bed. He was watching TV while the shower ran. It was some animal documentary, and featured the cutest damn little lizard creatures he'd ever seen. It was engrossing. There was this really tense moment where the little bastards were being chased across the beach by some snakes. The shower shut off, and a few minutes later, Quatre walked out while towelling his hair. His bathrobe revealed tantalisingly firm pale legs, and Duo rolled onto his side. "I mean like, you could just walk around showing off your arse…senal."

Quatre paused and looked at Duo in confusion. "What?"

"I mean, Trowa's new clerk really does smell of farts. I had to do some recon on this dude 'cause Sally asked me to. I mean like he's always on this kale diet." Duo paused, "Are you going to be ok with Trowa coming?"

"I'm going to be fine."

"Cool."

"I mean, it's not like he's got tickets."

"What?"

"Our tickets are already booked. I'm not booking theirs."

"Ooo, this is a level of petty I did not foresee."

"I've got whole basements worth of petty." Quatre moved to join him on the bed.

Duo laughed and rolled over, "So, the boys are going to be making their own way?"

Quatre was quiet for a long time. "No. I already booked them."

"Basements, did you in fact mean a dimple's worth of petty?"

"I blame Heero."

"What did Heero do?"

"He just really wants to protect you. It's sweet."

Duo rolled his eyes, "Uh huh." He propped his chin up, "He always thinks I'm kinda useless when I'm not in the field."

"Oh, I don't think he thinks you're useless." Quatre chuckled, "I mean, didn't he only offer to come with you because he heard I was going?"

"Hey, we're bad-asses."

"We are indeed."

"Honestly," Duo huffed, "You'd think that us going to the most remote little town in all the Americas, staying in some two-bit hotel, looking for this Matsumi chick…" His voice became distracted as his expression became dreamy, "And we're gonna be exploring some dark basement without torches… and we're going to split up, because we'll cover more ground that way…" He sighed happily, "It's going to be so awesome."

Quatre moved to lie on his back with Duo.

"You're really into this, aren't you?"

Duo rolled over to join him. "Buddy, you have no idea." He raised a hand, gesturing widely. "I'm gonna be so psyched."

"Want to sleep over?" Quatre smirked, "We can drink and work out contingencies for when we're inevitably going to get killed."

Duo smiled, "Sure." His phone started buzzing, and he had to wiggle on the bed to get it out. It was Heero calling, Duo thumbed his phone to answer the call. "Sup?"

"Where are you?"

Duo blinked. "Uh, I'm at Quatre's hotel. Uh, why?"

There was a long pause. "I thought we could go over the mission together."

"Oh, yeah. Cool."

"I'm at your apartment with pizza."

"Oh." Duo sat up straighter. "Shit."

"Hn." There was a pause. "Can I come to Quatre's?"

Duo glanced to one side; Quatre was engrossed with the animal documentary now. "Dude, can Heero come over? He's got pizza."

Quatre nodded distractedly, "Yeah. I'll order some beer. Oh no! Wait, I want to see if the eagle finds some food."

Duo blinked and stared at the TV with Quatre. The eagle in question had indeed –

"Duo!" Heero sounded vaguely put-upon. "Put down whatever you're doing."

"Oh yeah." Duo laughed, turning his attention back to the phone. "Hey Heero – Quatre says it's fine. See you in a bit?"

"I'll be there in 20 minutes."

* * *

Quatre opened the door, and ushered Heero into his luxury suite. Heero thanked him quietly, as he entered, scanning the room quickly. He spotted Duo's boots by the door, and quickly slipped his off. Quatre held out his hands for the pizza boxes to stop Heero from falling over. He was surprised when he noticed one of the pizzas was very warm. He glanced down at the boxes and noticed that the two pizzas were from different companies.

He looked up at Heero, who shrugged and looked away as if vaguely embarrassed. "I figured you might want some as well."

"Aw." Quatre smiled brightly, "Thanks Heero."

Heero stuck his hands in his pockets. "Hn."

"And I'm sure Duo will enjoy having the best of both worlds, his favourite pizza both hot and cold."

Heero looked away again but not before Quatre caught the small self-conscious smile. "Shut up."

Quatre walked through to the main room, pausing to put the pizzas on the table. "He just popped to the bathroom. Do you want a beer?"

"Ah, no." Heero held up car keys, "I drove. I saw that Duo left his car at home, did he-?"

"He took the bus, I believe." Quatre pulled two beers out of the minibar, and walked over to the couch. "Do you want a hot drink?"

"Coffee would be good."

"I'll ring down."

Heero tipped his head, "If it's not any trouble..."

"Nonsense." Quatre shrugged, "I'm basically living here. They can put up with me ringing."

Heero moved to sit down, "Duo said you'd taken leave of your company for a while."

"Yes." Quatre said as he called ring service. He ordered a thermos of coffee for three before returning to sit in a chair near Heero. "I..." He breathed out, nodding to himself to work up courage to say it. "I'm not quite over my break up, and it's affecting my work."

Heero lent forward, dark blue eyes intensely focused. "I was not aware that it had affected you so badly."

"I don't really..." Quatre looked away, feeling the hot flush of vulnerability. "I don't like talking about it. Seems stupid, right? We broke up so amicably, and yet." Quatre reached forward for a beer. He took a long sip, before looking at Heero. "I just had to get away from it all. Everything just seems empty and useless. Duo's offering me the chance of a lifetime to do something remarkably stupid."

Heero smiled warmly, "He does like to give everyone the chance."

"It will turn out be something mundane," Quatre said quickly, feeling the need to reassure them both. "But at least I'll get away from—" He paused, frowned and clapped a hand over his eyes, "Ugh, I was going to say thinking about Trowa, but he's going to be right there."

"If it helps, his precise words were that he wanted to make sure Duo didn't get you killed."

Quatre lowered his hand, staring at Heero for a moment at a loss. He swallowed the brief flair of hope, and dramatically rolled his eyes. "Never lets me have fun." Quatre smiled lopsidedly, "It will probably be some pirates, or some soldiers who didn't get the message the war is over."

The bathroom door opened, and Duo came out, he was adjusting his hair. "Hey Heero!"

Heero stood up, "Hi." He gestured the pizza, saying quickly, "I brought extra for Quatre."

Quatre smiled at their interaction, he took care to nod sarcastically at Heero, "Yes, because a whole extra pizza of meat feast was needed to feed me."

"My dude. That's my favourite! How is it you always read my mind?" Duo descended on the pizza, while Quatre went to open the door for the coffee. Heero sank back down into the sofa, picking up a slice for himself.

"I thought it would be a good idea to go over the mission, to make sure we all understood what to expect." Heero said quietly, "I hoped tonight would be a good idea."

Quatre poured a cup of coffee for Heero, "Probably pirates."

"Most definitely aliens." Duo said around a mouthful of pizza. He took a gulp of beer, "But seriously Heero, thanks man. If I'd realised you were coming over, I woulda totally been there."

"You said I never needed an invitation." Heero said, his voice steady. "I thought I'd try out the concept of not planning ahead."

"Haha! That's funny 'cause you came over to plan." Duo shifted around to sit in front of Heero, resting his back against Heero's knees. He tipped his head back onto Heero's knees, and looked up sincerely. "I'm totally sorry, and totally take back that you can always just drop in. You were right, Heero Yuy."

"A little louder."

"Man."

"Say it." Heero clearly taking pleasure in this thing he had over Duo. Quatre couldn't help but smile at the fondness that was clearly present in Heero's smirk.

"You were right, Heero Yuy!" Duo slid down, and dug out his phone. He wiped his hand off on his trousers, and then tapped a few times on the screen.

The animal documentary switched over to a series of photos. He gestured once on his phone, and brought up a photo. A woman with electric blue hair gathered in a high pony tail, stuck a middle finger up at the world while snarling.

"This is Naomi Matsumi. She basically grew up with Howard. Her brother left the ship for shore years ago, and she stuck with Howard. She's become a university professor … there we go!" he made a gesture, showing a short clip from a lecture that he'd clearly recorded on his phone.

"You attended a university lecture?" Quatre coughed in surprise.

"Hey, I got smarts!" Duo flicked a middle finger towards him, "I went because I was interested in the random folklore that exists on earth. I mean, like seriously, you will not believe the shit that people believe…"

* * *

Heero looked to the side; Duo was slumped down in the front seat, looking out. He flexed his fingers on the steering wheel, mentally practising what he was going to say. He took a small breath, and said, "I didn't realise things were so bad for Quatre."

Duo shifted in his seat, "Yeah." Duo paused as if thinking, "I mean I knew things were bad. I just figured he was keeping busy with work."

"You seem to be a good outlet for him." Heero said, his attention on the road. "You're a good friend."

"Ah, don't sell yourself short, man." Duo shrugged as he spoke, "If you came up with some crazy scheme to distract yourself and friends from the hellscape that is life, you'd do the same."

"You ..." Heero frowned. He pulled to a stop at a red light, and risked a glance at Duo. "You think your life is a hellscape?"

"I mean like, yeah." Duo said as if it should be obvious. "Mechanics is fine and all, but all I seem to do is sleep work eat sleep repeat." Heero looked over at him, creeping dread sending a shiver down him. Duo looked down at his hands, "I mean… should I be in active division? I should be using my skills for more, man."

"You love fixing things." Heero stated, his eyes focused on his knuckles - almost white from gripping the steering wheel. "You weren't happy in Active. You have seemed happier in Mechanics."

"Ya think?" Duo looked up, "Light's green, man."

Heero quickly started the car moving again. "I'm not always the best judge of character, but I have observed that you seem happier—"

"Am I a bug, dude?" Duo laughed, and Heero was almost alarmed by the sharp relief he felt. "Thanks. I guess..." He slumped in his chair, "I suppose thinking about what Quat's going through makes me think about what I want again."

"Which is?"

"I want what you've got." Duo looked at him, "What they had. That somebody to be there for and have someone to be there for me." He shook his head, "I sound stupid, but I'm tired of my home always being empty."

Heero frowned, "What have I got?"

Duo snorted. "You and the princess. You going through a rough patch now, but you two gonna get back together again, I just know it."

"I..." Heero purposely relaxed his hands, taking a very deep breath and releasing it slowly. "Relena and I dated for a few months, we were not ... I wanted something different from what she wanted. We are most certainly never getting back together."

"But- But you guys were perfect!" Duo swivelled in his seat, Heero resisted the urge to pull over. "You guys were like front cover, fairy tale ending. Oh man..." Duo thumped his fist into his hand, "We gotta get you back together, my dude. First Quatre and Trowa, then you and Relena... What next, Sally and Wufei?"

Heero couldn't help the little laugh as he indicated to pull into Duo's place. "First of all, Wufei and Sally aren't dating. They are platonic friends who seem to enjoy spending a lot of time together. Second of all—" he pulled in, and stopped the car to turn and face Duo. "Relena and I had a good relationship, but she needs someone more challenging and I need someone more stable."

"Relena's a rock—"

"She's got a hectic timetable, and I need more planning in my life than just what will be will be." Heero looked down. "And Quatre and Trowa broke up because ..." he frowned and looked away, "Well, I can only really assume but from what I have gathered, they just stopped talking to each other. I think relationships take more work than that."

"Huh." Duo thought about it for a moment, and then undid his seatbelt. "Look, man, I'm really sorry about not being here. You uh, I know you took a risk. I know you like to be more planned." He looked up at his darkened home. "It must not have been nice to arrive and find out I wasn't here."

"I don't like arriving unannounced." Heero conceded. "I won't do it again."

"I know that." Duo's lips pursed, "I suppose what I'm trying to say is that I respect that, and I know by not being here I've put that worry in your mind that when I say things, I might purposely not be there. Today was a fluke."

"Thank you."

Duo paused again, "How about... How about this: You can call or text me, and if I don't reply in the affirmative within five minutes, then you shouldn't come over?"

"Sounds like an appropriate exchange. I –" Heero straightened his shoulders, "I know you like to be spontaneous."

"Yeah, no. I get super focused on shit and then forget other people exist. Hey," Duo reached out to touch Heero's shoulder, "Do you want to come in for some tea?"

"It is late."

"I know, bud." Duo smiled lopsidedly, "But all this talk about people and relationships and the non-relatio- I mean, like, are you like one hundred percent sure about Sally and—"

"Sally has a boyfriend in Evidence." Heero said flatly.

Duo side-eyed him hard, "Not that skivvy bastard."

"Yes, that ... what is skivvy?" Heero shook his head, waving a hand, "Yes, the one that nobody actually likes. Wufei's been trying to convince her to dump him, he thinks he's dishonourable."

"See? All the more reason for you to come in and have a cuppa with me." Duo moved to get out of the car, but stopped when Heero grabbed his arm. "Whoa. What's up, buddy?"

Heero stared down at his hand, and consciously tried to ease his grip. When he couldn't do it, he shook his head and took a very deep breath. "Look. I would like to come in." He forced himself to look up. "But I." Duo's strange coloured eyes were wide, worry creeping into them. Heero watched as Duo slowly closed the door again, and rested a cool hand on top of his.

"Whatever it is, I'm here for you." Duo said, quietly in the tone of voice that Heero had come to realise what just for him.

For those moments when everything was overwhelming.

It both helped and made this moment worse. He closed his eyes, and Duo squeezed his hand. He didn't know how long they were sat there, but eventually the words found themselves.

"I think I am attracted to you, and I'd... I'd like to pursue a romantic relationship with you." Heero opened his eyes and looked at their clasped hands. Duo didn't move his hand, if anything he closed his hand a little tighter, not letting go.

The silence stretched on, and Heero found he didn't have the courage to look up.

"It." Duo said, stopped.

Heero closed his eyes and tried to rally himself. He knew he had to say something.

"Is." Duo said again, "Is it because I said I was lonely?" Duo's voice was full of quiet doubt, and a little sadness. "You don't gotta do that, bud."

Heero's eyes flew open, and he looked up startled. "I wasn't." He frowned, mind rapidly trying to process what Duo was thinking, trying to understand what he'd said to give the impression-

"Bud." Duo's voice was a shade warmer, there was a little amusement. "I just told you I'm lonely, and we just talked about relationships, and now you've told me you're attracted to me and want to get together." Duo's smile was kind. "I know you think that throwing yourself on grenades helps but—"

Heero's intake of breath was sharp, his frown deep. "No. I am not- I didn't mean that—" He stopped, looking down, wanting to take his hands away. He silently berated himself for not leaving them on the steering wheel, "You invited me in. I want to... I bought your favourite pizza, and came over without warning. I was." He felt the urge to grab his hair, every thought tumbling. "I was going to plan but then."

Duo moved his other hand and pulled Heero's hands up to clasp them. "Breathe a moment, Heero."

Heero swallowed hard.

Duo waited.

Heero felt the urge pass, and he gave one hard nod.

Duo nodded back. "Were you coming over tonight to tell me this instead?"

Heero managed another hard nod. Managed to look at Duo again.

Duo was looking at their hands like he hadn't seen them before. His strangely coloured eyes flicked toward him uncertainly. "I didn't ... I didn't think you were gay."

"I'm not." Heero blinked. "I... I don't really –" He gestured vaguely with his hand, "I'm… Gender isn't really a thing I notice."

"Oh." Duo nodded slowly, understanding and recognition dawning, "I mean. Duh." He tapped his own head, "I should have thought of that. I'm all over the place." He grinned, "I mean. I have a distinct preference for men, but I guess..." He stopped and closed his eyes, "I'm sorry, I just... My mouth is wandering and my brain is slowly catching up."

"Are you." Heero stared at their hands, "Are you available?"

Duo's laughter caught Heero suddenly like gunfire. Duo sobered almost immediately, "Yes. I am."

"Are you..." Heero searched for the right word uncertainly, "... open to the idea of –"

"Pursing a romantic relationship with you?" Duo finished for him. He looked at their hands and shifted his fingers until they were laced with Heero's. "Yeah, I think I am."

Heero blinked. "Are you also attracted to me in the same way?"

"I'm not going even bother pretending," Duo rolled his eyes, humour in his expression, "Have you even seen you work out?"

Heero felt it then, they were back to normal. He smirked slightly, "I've been too concentrated on showing off for you." He saw Duo shift in a sudden, subtle movement and recognised the spiky hot feeling. He dared to look up to meet Duo's strangely-coloured eyes.

Duo looked ahead, "Yeah. Yeah, well done." He snorted, "That was hot." He glanced at Heero, "Offer of tea still stands." He shook their hands, "I wanna get caught up."

* * *

**Notes:** Hey there, I've been in a daze. Pounding at these keys because I don't want to disappoint myself. It's been ages since I last wrote something I actively enjoyed reading. A small part of me hopes you enjoyed it too, but even if you don't leave me a kudos cupcake or a comment sundae, I want you to know I still appreciate you for being here. Thank you so much!


	6. Let's be clear

**Disclaimer**: hahahahahahaha… I'm so old. You know the score.

**Notes**: BWHA HAHAHA in this chapter there is Lime.

**Chapter Synopsis**: Duo takes a shower, Heero gives himself a hand.

**Song**:_ Sia – Elastic Heart_

* * *

_And I will stay up through the night  
Let's be clear, I won't close my eyes  
And I know that I can survive  
I walked through fire to save my life  
And I want it, I want my life so bad  
And I'm doing everything I can  
Then another one bites the dust  
It's hard to lose a chosen one_

* * *

**Eldritch Holiday**

By Doctor Megalomania

* * *

_You did not break me  
I'm still fighting for_ peace

* * *

**Chapter 5** – Let's be clear

* * *

Heero opened his eyes, stared at the ceiling for a long time, trying to identify all the sounds and the sensations. The bed was much warmer than his own. Softer. Duo's ceiling was higher, but he needed to dust the light fixture. It was good light, though, from the window. He closed his eyes for a moment, breathing in the heady scent of Duo. It was a mix of his hair, body and something else that made his body want to stir. He reached up and stroked the back of his hand over the pillow. It wasn't warm from where Duo had lain. He could hear the shower going, and his mind flashed with images of Duo washing himself.

His body tightened.

A small smile slipped onto his lips, as he moved his hand down to touch himself. His mind supplied him with incomplete thoughts. Duo's bright smile. Water running down the small of his back. Those strangely coloured eyes… violet when he was happy, deepest purple with fury. He stroked firmer. He moved his legs, spreading them to give him more room to touch his body further. The sound of Duo's laughter. The flex of his body as he took his shirt off. Warm, wet kisses in the dark. The warmth of his body beside him as they fell asleep. The sound of the shower shutting off made his eyes snap open. Pushing himself up onto his elbows, he looked towards the door as Duo came in, hair pinned up. Duo paused in the door way, his dressing gown loosely tied.

"Morning," Heero swallowed, not even trying to hide how aroused he was.

"Oh. Shit." A slow smile appeared on his face, "Hey, Heero. You look..."

Heero felt himself throb as Duo licked his bottom lip.

"Oh, yeah. You look so good in my bed."

He bit his lip and took a step forward.

"I mean, like damn." His strange-coloured eyes roved Heero's body, "I just ..." He paused as if uncertain.

Heero shifted his hips, drawing Duo's attention to his lower body.

The blush that crept up Duo's face made Heero clench his teeth, nodding. Duo looked more confident now, "I just got off in the shower. You in my bed, I couldn't stop thinking—"

Heero grunted, flopping back onto the bed gracelessly, hand driving straight back down into his underwear. He pulled himself out of his underwear, and stroked. The bed dipped, and his eyes opened lazily to see Duo crawling up. "Mind if I stay?"

"I want you to." Heero breathed, as Duo lay down beside him. His free hand reached up to touch Duo's hair, "Can I?"

"Yeah," Duo leant in, bringing a fresh wave of his scent to Heero. "I'd love to kiss you right now."

"Yes!" Heero felt himself wind up, fingers tangling in Duo's hair, feeling the pins and the slight damp in Duo's hair. He pulled Duo down, lips crushing together. Unpractised, teeth bumping. Duo shifted, his hands sliding over the hard muscle of Heero's arm. Suddenly they were kissing better, hot and wet, Heero opened his eyes desperately. Duo broke away, cheeks rosy, eyes fond. Moved forward again. Forehead pressing against Heero's. Heero stared, mouth forming words he couldn't say. Duo's hand on his arm, shifted again, squeezed his upper arm. His own hand, tight in Duo's hair. He realised it could hurt.

"Too tight?"

Duo's shake of his head was sharp, enough to shake loose some locks of hair. He pressed his forehead against Heero, harder, eyes shutting. Heero's hand worked like a piston. He could feel himself coil up. Duo's own erection, only the beginning of one, rubbed up against his leg. Duo moved again, lips dipping down to his ear, his neck. Hot breath against the soft skin between shoulder and neck.

"Heero, do it." Duo whispered, licking and kissing the skin he found. "Do it! I want you too!"

"I'm going to—" Heero ground out, "I've wanted to be here. And there! With you –" he swallowed hard, losing it. "In the shower!" His back arched, eyes squeezing shut. "Wanted you! Duo!" His hand clenched in Duo's hair, "I want you!"

"Oh, hell yeah. Me too!" Duo moved with him, rising up to kiss him roughly as Heero moved up onto one elbow. They bashed teeth again, and Duo's quiet laugh just pushed him over the edge.

Heero's climax was brutal, he panted and whimpered and pulled Duo back for another kiss, riding out the complicated emotions that came crashing over him. They collapsed into the bed, kissing gently, breathing together.

"I wish you..." Heero breathed, opening his eyes. Duo lay beside him, strange-coloured eyes fond and hot. Heero smiled slowly. "I was thinking about you in the shower."

"Funny," Duo chuckled low, "I was thinking about you in the shower too."

They laughed together quietly. Heero sighed fondly and then licked his bottom lip. "Have you got some... something I can-?"

"Oh!" Duo rolled onto his back and reached into the bedside table. "Oh yeah," he handed over some tissues. Heero took a moment to clean himself up, while Duo turned away to give him some privacy.

"You don't have to." Heero said, "We've just..."

"I didn't want to presume, man." Duo moved to sit up on the bed. He raised his hands to pull a couple of the hairpins out, his braid flopping down to hit the bed. "So. What do you want to do today?" He chuckled as he caught Heero casting a glance down his body. "I dunno about you, bud, but I'm much older and I am gonna need a break."

Heero lightly snorted, "I'm joking. Though," he shifted uncomfortably. "I'll help you change the bed clothes."

They laughed.

* * *

"So, I kinda don't really have food!" Duo called from the kitchen, "I mean, I can do you some toast?"

"Toast will do." Heero called back as he kept drying his hair. He smiled, catching sight of himself in the mirror. His clothes from yesterday were slightly crumpled, but no worse for wear. He looked himself over and smiled, the bedclothes weren't the only items that needed changing. Duo's clean underwear was tight on him, not painfully so, but it gave him a buzz every time he remembered the morning. He stepped out of the bathroom, taking care to leave it as he'd found it. The room was neat, much like the rest of the apartment. Heero walked through to the kitchen, a small room just off the living room. Duo was leaning against a counter top, expression rueful. "Okay, so there's no toast, either."

Heero smiled, and moved to stand in front of Duo. He leant forward to press a kiss against Duo's lips.

"We can go out." Duo said as Heero pulled back. "We're um, we're supposed to be meeting the guys. So..." he raised his arms to wind them around Heero's neck, "We could go get breakfast and we could, uh, talk."

"We do need to plan the trip." Heero conceded. "We need to make further travel arrangements beyond simply landing and 'hoofing it' as you've noted in your emails."

"I was thinking more about us."

Heero moved his hands to grip Duo's hips. "Yes. We need to talk about starting our relationship." He moved closer, "I want to make sure I get this right."

"You're doing great so far." Duo smiled, pulling him into a hug. "Like, this is just..." he pulled back, blinking, "Like easy? I thought it should be harder."

"It will get harder. This—" he pulled on Duo, "This part is easy because we already had the trust. You..." He breathed out, "You are kind, a good friend. We make a good team."

"Hells to the yeah, bud." Duo smiled. "So..."

"So."

"Breakfast?"

"Breakfast."

* * *

Duo laughed as he used his toast to mop up the remnants of the sauce. "Yeah, I love my apartment too so yeah, I definitely think moving in should be a looonng way off." He chewed for a moment, and drank some coffee before continuing. "I think the more important question is... are you ok if we keep this..." he paused, shaking his head, "I mean. I don't want other people to be all..." he frowned deeply, his hands gesturing a little frantically, "I'm not ready to deal with. Ugh."

"I'm okay with not informing people." Heero smiled understandingly before drinking some coffee, he swallowed and reached out to tap Duo's hand. "I would rather escape our friends'... rather intense scrutiny as well. At least," he stroked Duo's hand, "At least until I have a better understanding of what I feel for you. I know I am very attracted to you, I know I like being with you."

"Yeah." Duo nodded with him. "Oh yeah, this morning was so." He turned his hand over and grasped Heero's, "So everything. And it's... so. I don't want to mess it up." He looked down, concerned. "I mean, Quatre and Trowa—"

"They didn't talk to each other. We—" Heero tightened his grip. "We are going to talk to each other."

"Yeah."

"Yes." Heero glanced down and nodded finally, "I was worried when I found out you were planning on going on this ... crazy trip."

"Well, I'm glad you decided to come with me!" Duo leant forward and rested his chin on his hand. "Didn't think you'd want to go."

"I don't." Heero tilted his head, "It sounds like a truly stupid idea."

"Hold up." Duo straightened. "Then why aren't you stopping me?"

Heero's gaze was steady, once he was certain he had Duo's full attention, he slowly looked Duo up and down and allowed a small smirk. "It's been a while since Bali."

Duo's confusion was warming. "That was ... a mission?"

"It was." Heero nodded and sipped his coffee, letting go of Duo's hand to signal for more coffee. "We got stuck in that motel, for a few days' downtime, reminded me of the wars. And then you bought back this great take out."

"The Thai food?" Duo laughed, confusion still in his face, "It was the only takeout that had more than two stars in their hygiene rating."

"Best thing I'd ever eaten, and you lit the candles, and we hunkered down to eat together under a quilt. You were just talking about your favourite movie at the time, and I..." He was interrupted by the waitress.

Duo waited for the waitress to finish pouring the coffee before the thought clicked though his mind. "Since Bali?"

Heero busied himself with his coffee, "Yes?" He glanced up. Uncertainty danced through his fingers, as he fiddled with the spoon.

"Oh. Damn." Duo blinked, concern flooded his voice, "Did I-should I have noticed? I'm sorry—"

Heero held up his hands in a stopping motion, "Ah. No! I'm..." he looked momentarily confused. "Glad? I wasn't ready to tell you."

"Bali was—"

"I know. I needed a lot of time." Heero shook his head, "I wasn't sure if it was just it was something." He paused and swallowed, "Very ... _very_ physical or if it was something more emotional."

"Very, _very_ physical?" Duo drawled smugly. "Huh?"

"Definitely physical once I realised you enjoyed my hip thrusts. Hard to focus on form when I caught you looking at me like—" he broke off, licking his lip and looked away, smiling when Duo chuckled.

"Aw yeah, I know." Duo smiled brightly, "What can I say, Heero? You got some lift in those scrawny hips."

"It." He paused, looking for the right word. "It pleased me. Knowing you found me attractive. Knowing you could want me too."

Duo nodded. "Huh. I..." He glanced down, "I kinda always liked you, I think. I mean, you were hot in the war, hotter once you uh, filled in those scrawny bones. I uh, I wept for days when I found you and Relena broke up, I hated how sad you were."

Realisation warmed Heero, "Is that why we have Bad Movie Night?"

"That's why we have Bad Movie Night," Duo nodded, his smile was embarrassed, "You needed a regular thing; I wanted to make you less sad." He blinked and picked up his coffee cup, "So you decided to tell me because you wanted to go on holiday with me."

Heero pulled out his phone, and made a couple of gestures. He turned his phone to show Duo a photo. It was the two of them, one last silly selfie from Bali. Duo had insisted, looping an arm around him, other arm outstretched with the phone, Heero had thought it was funny, his laughter caught on camera. "I've always wanted another photo. I've never had a purpose to ask for another. When I realised you were going without me, it hurt. And I realised... I didn't want you to go, but when I thought about it, I didn't want you to go without me." He paused for a moment, "But then it didn't make sense to simply tell you not to go. I needed to tell you the real reason."

"And so, you came over to tell me." Duo smiled, he held up his coffee cup. "And here we are."

Heero smiled, clinking his cup against Duo's. "And here we are."

Duo grinned and glanced at his watch, he looked up and then at Heero. "Looks like it's a nice day for a walk around the park. We got an hour or so to kill."

Heero nodded, and got up. Walking around the table, he tapped a couple of times on his phone. Pausing for a moment beside Duo, who'd stood to join him, he moved to wrap an arm around Duo's shoulders, and raised his phone to take a selfie.

It was perfect, Duo's surprised laugh was caught.


	7. Like you know

**Disclaimer**: hahahahahahaha… I'm so old. You know the score.

**Notes**: Wufei would like to go home. Sally doesn't give him a reason. Jules sends some pictures.

**Song**: _Fall Out Boy – Favourite Record_

* * *

_You were the song stuck in my head  
Every song I've ever loved  
Played again and again and again  
And you can get what you want but it's never enough  
And I'll spin for you like your favorite records used to  
And I'll spin for you like your favorite records used to_

* * *

**Eldritch Holiday**

By Doctor Megalomania

* * *

_And when you asked, you asked me how I'm doing  
Like you know, you know how much better off I am_

* * *

**Chapter 6** – Like you know

* * *

Wufei massaged his temples. Drew a deep breath. In and hold and out and hold… He had met with worse. He would prevail. He glanced to his left. Heero and Duo were napping. Duo was sat upright, head tilted forward. His hat was pulled low over his eyes. Heero was asleep on his shoulder, his hand resting on Duo's knee. The flight had been an early one, and Duo and Heero still hadn't lost the ability to stay awake until they were in a position to sleep. Then sleeping was really easy. Wufei rolled his shoulders, and looked to his right.

With an empty seat between them, Trowa sat nearer Wufei on the aisle and Quatre was sat near the window. Trowa was reading, his eBook clearly very engrossing. Quatre had spent the entire flight so far staring out the window. They were flying commercial, Quatre had managed to secure tickets for all of them, and the other passengers were not entirely irritating. Their journey had been somewhat tense. Trowa and Quatre were not directly speaking to each other, and had managed the entire four and a half hours of journey so far without directly acknowledging each other.

Wufei glanced back over to the left. Then there was Heero and Duo. He rolled his eyes. He wasn't sure what had changed between the two but the normal back and forth between them was lacking its usual easy flow. There was something new, another level of entanglement between them that was new. They didn't speak about it, so Wufei tucked it away.

He looked down at the tablet in his lap. He scrolled through the email chain again, tapping again to bring up a map of Happiness. The satellite images were blurry, and maps were unreliable. Nobody seemed to agree where roads were. Sometimes buildings were on the left of a road; sometimes the same building was on the right. He had looked at different maps, and felt a slip of foreboding when he realised that the satellite picture wasn't quite right.

He couldn't put his finger on it.

He flicked through a couple of websites, dipping into Professor Matsumi's research, the town's weird history. Like the roads, nobody quite seemed to agree what happened in Happiness. There were a remarkably high percentage of gas leaks. Wufei raised an eyebrow. "I can see the headlines now: Former Gundam Pilots disappear under mysterious circumstances." He sighed, and closed the tabs. He opened a new one, and logged into the secure Preventers instant chat program. He pinged Sally. **Po. You there?**

_**Sup, mah dawg?**_

Wufei raised a hand and pinched his nose, failed to stop the smirk appearing. **I am no-one's dawg.**

_**fine. how's the flight, sweetums?**_

**killing me. is there an urgent mission calling me back?**

_**npe.**_

**please?**

_**sorry. no go. Une doesn't want you being by yourself with the other pilots outta town.**_

Wufei looked up and stared hard at the head rest in front of him. He stabbed the tablet with his finger to type. **I joined an evil organisation ONE TIME.**

Sally replied almost instantly with a hand clapping emoji between each word. _**One. Time. Was. Enough. Asshole.**_

**How did you type this so quickly?**

_**some of us are capable of using our emoji keyboard one handed.**_

**uh huh.** Wufei sighed as the toddler up front began screaming about her doll again. **are you sure I can't just come home?**

_**Whaaaaaaat? And miss out on the total drama of one Broken-Up! Gundam Couple, and the will-he-won't-he drama of Duo lusting over Heero? 20 hot that Duo tries to jump Heero before the end of the trip.**_

**I'm not taking it.**

_**don't need you to. Noin took it. She reckons it's more that Heero's gonna jump Duo before the end of the trip. I just need you to do my recon. It's really important you tell me the instant one of them makes moo-eyes at the other!**_

**I am not spying on my friends for you.**

_**I'm your friend.**_

**you're a bad friend**

_**i'm your best friend who gets you dates and takes care of your murdercat.**_

**I want a cut.**

_**Now who's being a bad friend!**_

**50%**

_**shut up**_

**ok.** He lifted the tablet and slyly took a picture of Heero's hand resting on Duo's knee. He posted it. **still not worth it?**

_**holy shit**_

**time sensitive, Po. clock is ticking**

_**ok, 50%. drive a hard bargain, Wu.**_

**Gotta get my kicks here. We're probably going to get kidnapped by pirates.**

_**Nah. My money's on mercenaries who don't know the war is over.**_

**please.**

_**totally. **_She posted an eye-rolling emoji._** Noin thinks you're going to arrive and you'll find an army of cannibals. **_Several plates with knives and fork emojis followed.

Wufei snorted inelegantly, prompting a brief glance from Trowa. He made a brushing off gesture towards the tablet. "Sally says Noin thinks we're going to meet cannibals."

Trowa smiled slightly and nodded. He seemed to think for a moment, and at the same time Quatre seemed to rouse himself from his thoughts and turned toward them both.

"Serial killers."

Trowa blinked and turned to look at an equally surprised Quatre. Wufei smiled slightly, glanced at his watch and returned his attention to the tablet. **Quatre and Trowa are finally talking to each other. only took 5 hours.**

_**no way.**_ Sally added some wide eye emojis. _**Wow, and here I thought Pumpkin scratching me only twice today was a miracle. Hallelujah.**_

* * *

Trowa broke eye contact with Quatre, and returned his attention to his book for a moment, before giving up and glancing over. "Did you..." He paused to clear his throat, "Ever finish the—"

"Oh, uh." Quatre blinked for a moment, thinking. "No. Did you-?"

"No. I wonder if they ever caught the crazy eyes mcwhite guy."

Quatre's snort was quiet; Trowa risked a glance and saw that Quatre had turned away again. He pursed his lips, and turned his attention back to the book.

"Duo told me you were dating." Quatre's voice was carefully devoid of emotion. "A clerk from records, he told me."

"Uh. Something like that." Trowa stared hard at his eBook, before giving up and moving back up to the first line and reading it again.

"Good." Quatre said. There was a long moment. Quatre turned away from the window, head tilted as if he hadn't understood. "Wait, 'something like that'?"

Feeling a hot flush of embarrassment, Trowa closed his eBook and slouched a little in his chair. "We... broke up."

"Oh. I'm sorry... I shouldn't-"

"Just before we left."

"… Do you mean today?"

Trowa tapped his fingers on the hard cover of his eBook. "Yep."

"Are... are you okay?" The concern in Quatre's voice was so real; it made Trowa even more embarrassed.

Trowa blew out a hot breath of air, briefly flicking his hair out of the way and stared hard at the headrest in front of him. "I figure it's a bit of a red flag when your boyfriend freaks out about you leaving on a trip with a group of people who are basically your family, your brothers really, which just happens to include an ex, who's been an ex for a while."

"He dumped you because I was going?"

Trowa's lips quirked sarcastically. "I... yeah, I dumped him." Trowa took a breath and looked at Quatre, "It's not okay to demand I check in every hour." He shifted a bit and grabbed his phone. He switched it on, and then tapped the connection. He gave it a moment, and then handed it over to Quatre. Quatre looked at the locked phone confused, as it started buzzing with dozens of new messages.

"Go ahead." Trowa said, unconcerned.

Quatre took a moment to unlock Trowa's phone, a little surprised he still could. He opened the secured messaging app, and felt his eyebrows shoot up. "Jules?"

"A-hm." Trowa had flipped open his eBooks and had started reading again.

"Jules is ..."

"Clingy."

Quatre scrolled through the myriad of messages, amusement bubbling up in him before coming across a series of pictures that Jules had clearly intended for Trowa's eyes only. He cleared his throat and handed the phone back. "Didn't think you liked clingy." He said, with only a hint of sarcasm. "Didn't realise Jules was short and blonde."

Trowa's chuckle was dark. "I'm not going to pretend blondes aren't a thing for me. Clingy though, you were not clingy. I realise that now." Trowa held up the phone and glanced at the message stream. He pursed his lips at the images, he switched off the device.

"I'm sure that Jules will understand." Quatre said after a long moment, "Just talk him through what you need."

"I don't need someone who can't trust me." Trowa risked a look at Quatre, "He's known me all of three months. He doesn't get to send me dick pics in the hopes of winning me back."

"Hmm." Quatre turned away again, resuming his stare out the small window. There was a ghost of a smile in his reflection.

Trowa pursed his lips, and then tried to resume reading again. It took a few moments for Trowa to work through everything Quatre had said. He glanced up, "How'd you know he was short? He sent me photos of his penis."

"Like I said." Quatre said, turning to beam a very cool smile at Trowa. "Short and blonde."

Trowa felt his mouth fall open, scandalised. Behind him, he heard Wufei cough suddenly, and then give a quick set of claps like he was impressed. Quatre tipped his head towards Wufei, mouthing a quick 'thank you', before returning his attention to the window. Trowa turned his head towards Wufei, finally remembering to close his mouth and found Wufei nonchalantly typing away at his tablet, his lips twisted with suppressed amusement.

* * *

Duo walked away from the luggage carousel with his bag, leaving the others to grab their bags. He pulled his phone out, and signed into the local Wi-Fi long enough to download his emails and messages. There was a voice message from his boss in Preventer Technical, mostly just spending a few minutes calling him an asshole for taking the others. A few confusing text messages from Jules warning him to keep his hands off Trowa. "Okay, but no." Duo said, as he flicked past them. He opened the email he had from Howard.

* * *

**To**: Maxwelld

**From**: Mike Howard

**Subject**: FW: RE: RE: Check-in!

_Duo, I'm getting seriously worried. Here's the latest email from her. It's weird and I don't like it. If you boys need help, you just get a message to me. I heard from Rashid, Winner's man. He sounds even more worried than me, and I didn't think that was possible._

* * *

**To**: Mike Howard

**From**:Prof-N-Matsumi

**Subject**: Re: Re: Check-in!

_Old man. Send me more scientists. I have need of knowledge. Tell David I do miss his snorting. He should come here if he has good scientific knowledge. Tell him not to come if he is not a scientist._

* * *

Duo snorted as he dashed off a swift reply to Howard, agreeing with him. He updated Howard on their progress. They'd landed in the state and had a good half a day's worth of journey ahead of them. He glanced up as Heero stood near enough to bump elbows. While they'd been waiting to board the plane, they'd planned out their journey from the airport to Happiness. They hadn't managed to get through to any of the potential hotels, but there were some bed-and-breakfasts that could support them in a pinch.

Wufei stepped up and nodded, "Looks like we're almost ready to get the car." He held up his phone, "I made contact with the preventers' local office, and they can lend us something with decent storage, weapons and TAC gear stowed."

Duo looked up, hopefully. "Please say they've got nothing left but a heap o'junk that needed to be scrapped a hundred years ago."

"What?" Wufei scowled, "No."

"We've got everything," Quatre said as he pulled up his suitcase. Trowa was grimacing at his own phone. Quatre jerked a thumb towards Trowa, "Unfortunately I couldn't persuade Trowa to leave all of his baggage here."

"Oh?" Duo blinked, looking around Trowa, seeing his one suitcase and a rucksack slung over his shoulder.

Trowa rolled his eyes, "Stop referring to Jules as baggage."

Quatre walked forward, ignoring him. He linked arms with Duo, and started walking forward purposefully. "Duo, I simply must know more about Jules. He sounds fun." He raised his voice as he walked away, "You mentioned something about him not being able to tell the difference between you and the others…"

"You know," Duo's whisper was not a whisper, "Jules has been texting me, to tell me not to sleep with Trowa. Apparently my blonde hair means I shouldn't get involved."

"Oh god." Trowa dropped his shoulders and looked up at the airport ceiling.

"I mean." Wufei began flatly.

"Don't."

"He does have a good point." Wufei continued heedless, "Jules is remarkably bad at telling us apart."

"Hmm." Heero started walking, "It probably could have been solved if Jules actually met all of us."

"I was thinking the same thing!" Wufei said, joining him, sarcasm dripping. "Maybe then he wouldn't be texting me to tell me not to sleep with Trowa!"

Heero replied in a unsurprised tone, "Oh, Jules has been texting me too. Apparently I have great hair and am Becky. I don't know why he thinks my name is Becky."

"Really?" Wufei linked his arm with Heero's and strode forward, affecting the same sarcastic tone as Quatre. "Tell me more about Jules; he sounds like so much fun!"

"I hate all of you." Trowa started after them, long legs carrying past the two. "Jules is… a sensitive soul!"

* * *

**Notes**: Hi you, missed you so much I posted twice in one week, hope it's not inconvenient but I just wanted to check in. Thank you so much for being here.


	8. You love and you can hate me

**Disclaimer**: hahahahahahaha… I'm so old. You know the score.

**Notes:** Trowa won't let go of his baggage but that's not going to stop Quatre from being an asshole

_**Song**__: Avril Lavigne feat. Marilyn Manson – Bad Girl_

* * *

_You know you know you know I'm crazy  
I just wanna be your baby  
You can fuck me and then play me  
You love and you can hate me_

_Miss me, miss me, now you wanna kiss me_

* * *

**Eldritch Holiday**

By Doctor Megalomania

* * *

_One night, you won't forget the rest of your life  
So come on over to the wild side  
Buckle up and baby hold on tight_

* * *

**Chapter 7** – You love and you can hate me

* * *

"You guys know this is a trap and you are gonna get eaten by cannibals."

There wasn't a question in Noin's voice. She was matter of fact. Wufei held up his tablet. The connection was fairly strong. He walked around their vehicle. The local Preventers office had been notified by Une of their imminent arrival, Wufei's call had simply let them know they'd arrived and they had arranged for the famous Gundam Pilots to borrow one of their tactical vehicles. Duo and Quatre had seemed slightly disappointed, and Heero had rolled his eyes when Duo had muttered something about not being able to count on it breaking down.

Heero was on the ground, typing rapidly into his combat laptop - a tough compact machine that had survived since the wars. He was setting up a regular back up to the preventer's server. Trowa was loading up the back, while Quatre and Duo carried in supplies. Wufei tapped the screen once, to give Noin the rear-camera view of the set up they had.

"I mean," She said, sat at her desk, "You read that last email—"

Duo poked his head around the vehicle, "Oh yeah." He walked over, leaning in to wave at Noin. "To be honest with you, I'm kinda hoping this turns out all Cosmic Horror on us, but really I think this might turn out to be a rather dull Survival Horror." Duo clapped Wufei on the shoulder. "Sorry, dude. I'll tell Sally you loved her."

Wufei rolled his eyes hard.

Noin was bemused. "Was that English?"

"Look, just don't ask." Wufei replied, frustration in his voice as he moved to squat near Heero. "I don't know what he means either."

There was a long sigh from Heero. His hands hovered over the keyboard for a moment. His voice was monotone as he began explaining. "Duo has hopes that something larger than humanity crushes us uncaringly as it continues on its way, but he suspects that actually we will end up in a dark abandoned place, most likely a forest or a factory, trying to survive an unknown foe while simultaneously being picked off one by one. He expressed his sympathy to you because statistically speaking in most western survival horror movies; the most noticeable minority will die first." Heero paused and frowned. He closed his eyes for a moment, as if arguing with himself, and then opened his mouth. He raised his voice, "Statistically speaking, Quatre has more chances of surviving than you in your typical Survival Horror Movie."

"I concede, he's got Final Girl all over him!" Duo shouted back from the rear of their truck. "But Quatre's too good for this sinful earth! I'm just Fashionably Scarred and I'm Genre Savvy, admittedly that places me into the Killed Mid-Sentence, but as long as I try not to make any speeches, I should be fine."

"I continue to have concerns that this may turn into a Deadly Road Trip." Heero replied, resuming his typing. "We have a group of friends made of Couples. We're going to a new place under the pretext of going on holiday—"

"No one's counting Quatre and Trowa as a couple!"

"- and it is quite likely we will become trapped in a Closed Circle without hope of help arriving." Heero paused in his typing, "How do you hope to circumvent the possibility that you or Quatre may become Stuffed Into A Fridge?"

Duo leant around the corner of the truck to level a sour look at Heero, "You're just presuming that you and Trowa are the Heroes of this story. Also –" he paused to gesture between them. "What if I'm the Hero and you're the Hero's Best friend?"

Heero resumed typing, "Actually I think you're more the Plucky Comic Relief."

"Oh ho-ho! So harsh!" Duo resumed packing. "Well, I'm actually planning on becoming the Ignored Expert of this epic adventure."

"How are you going to be the Ignored Expert?" Heero replied, "You're already ignoring the obvious signs that this is a trap."

"Yeah, well, whatever."

Noin just looked bemused from the tablet, "Did you catch any of that?"

Wufei shook his head, "I have a nasty feeling this whole trip is going to be one long cliché."

* * *

"I just don't get how I would be a final girl too good for this sinful earth." Quatre was folding the old paper style map, "I mean I destroyed a colony—"

"It was evacuated." Trowa said dourly from the front.

"- I'm a monster." Quatre continued as if he hadn't heard Trowa say anything, "Compared to the rest of you—"

"You purposely chose an evacuated—"

"Trowa, do you mind? I'm trying to be a self-sacrificing shit here to get out of being the virginal one again?" Quatre swatted the back of Trowa's seat. He leaned forward to look past Wufei to say to Duo, "I mean - in all honesty, you were the literal choir boy, you get to be final girl today."

"I can't be Final Girl," Duo pointed at himself, speaking as if it should have been obvious, "I have a tragic backstory, which means I'm going to die in a poetic manner, probably saving one of you."

Securely sat in the middle between Quatre and Duo, Wufei folded his arms and squinted, "Are you trying to get out of being the—" here he turned to Duo and said, "I hate you for making me know this," He look back to Quatre, "Get out of being the final survivor?" He raised a hand to make a dismissive gesture, "Though given that we are the Gundam pilots, the heroes of the previous war, and I mean seriously, what could possibly go wrong?"

Clapping a dramatic hand over his eyes, Duo groaned loudly, "NO, WUFEI! I already said it! That's tempting fate!"

"What?" Wufei grinned with a satisfaction which expressed he knew exactly what he'd done. "Just because you fear-"

"Total annihilation."

"- that by saying the words—"

"We're doomed." Duo spread his hands, "We had a chance." He gestured to one side and then the other. "Now you killed us."

"- what could possibly go wrong?—"

"WHY WOULD YOU SAY IT AGAIN?" Duo threw his hands up in frustration. Quatre laughed.

"- Will some have an impact on our trip and—"

"Do you want us to die?" Duo jabbed a finger into Wufei's arm. "This is how we're going to die."

"-we, as the famed Gundam pilots –"

"Now you're just taking the piss." Duo folded his arms and looked away.

"- couldn't survive whatever is coming our way—"

"So dead." Duo huffed, "So very dead."

"- even though it's probably just a busted internet cable."

"So very- what?" Duo blinked in confusion. "Wait. What?!"

"She's got a broken internet connection." Wufei held a pious finger up, "Calling it now. We arrive and there's nothing wrong."

"Serial killers." Trowa said dryly, turning around in the front seat to look back, nodding sagely. "Definitely serial killers."

"I liked Noin's idea of cannibals." Quatre piped up. "I'm switching to cannibals."

"I think it's going to be pirates." Heero said, taking the chance to glance up at the rear view mirror. "Research suggests that we're more likely to encounter pirates. Preventers' reports from the area suggest the cave systems under the port are unmonitored and therefore an excellent base of operations for pirates."

"Screw all of you, it's a cosmic horror and aliens." Duo leant his elbow on the open window. "We're going to arrive, there's going to be a weird-ass alien invasion and you are all going to be like 'sorry we didn't believe you, Duo' while we're getting beamed up, and I'm gonna be like 'huh, too late, assholes'..."

"In any case," Heero started, "I'm pulling over at the services ahead." He glanced into the rear-view mirror at Duo, "I need to stretch my legs, and it's your shift."

Duo nodded, "Sure thing, buddy."

Quatre arched his back, stretching as best he could in the limited space of the vehicle. "That's sounds like a great idea. I can check in with Rashid at the same time." He tapped Trowa's headrest, speaking lightly, "Maybe you should check in with Jules?"

"No offence, but I'm not going to check in with someone who doesn't respect the fact I don't want to see his penis anymore."

"Aw," Quatre leaned as far forward as he could, to rest on the edge of Trowa's seat to say, "But you could be checking in with him. He's so worried about your body; he's texted all of your friends to tell them to not jump you."

"You're enjoying this."

"What can I say? You dumped me for being too clingy." Quatre smiled maliciously, "Can't say I'm not enjoying the karma."

Trowa blinked, holding up a finger. "I did not dump you for being clingy."

"Uh huh." Quatre's tone of voice was disbelieving.

"Okay," Trowa held up a hand, "It wasn't the main reason though. We—"

The vehicle violently lurched to a stop. Wufei reached forward, undoing his seatbelt and clapped Heero on the arm, and said with complete sincerity. "You are a true hero."

Quatre rolled his eyes, as Heero, Duo and Wufei bailed out of the vehicle as quickly as they could.

"Ugh." Trowa muttered, "It's not that bad."

"I don't know. We did used to get into some doozies."

"They were pretty epic fights." Trowa nodded, undoing his own seat belt. He twisted in his chair and looked back properly towards Quatre. "I don't want to fight here. I'm only here so that you and Duo don't wind up dead under some psycho's floorboards."

"I've got to admit…" Quatre chuckled lightly. "You've got enough on your hands with Jules."

Trowa closed his eyes for a moment, "You're having a lot of fun."

"I took a leave of absence because I'm not quite past our break up." Quatre sat back, folding his pale hands in his lap. "When I heard you were dating again, I was shocked. Upset. I decided to go on this hare brained scheme of Duo's because I thought it would be a good diversion." He pressed a hand against his chest, "I thought by doing something crazy it would remind me how I used to be before we met." Quatre swallowed, "Maybe I could forget about you. Move on."

Trowa nodded in understanding, "I get that. I'm here because I couldn't let you get... well, I don't want either of you to get hurt, it feels right."

Quatre's smile was lopsided, "Sounds like Une would prefer not to have a Gundam at a loose end. I don't think you would have been given a choice."

"I believe that's called the Chang Principle." Trowa winced, "If I remember correctly it's Article 29b, paragraph 3, subsection 5a in the Preventers Conventions."

Quatre smiled patiently.

"I could…" Trowa continued, "If you'd rather I'd—"

"Don't be silly." Quatre shook his head, "I thought this would be suffocating. But –" he gestured Trowa lightly, "I didn't know that you'd break up with a short, blonde asshole, who'd be even worse than me with the break up. This –" He gestured Trowa's phone, "This is fucking hilarious. I'm nowhere near as bad as this, and we dated for 6 years." He gestured himself, "I thought I was still pining. Turns out, I am but I'm not an asshole for it."

"I'm not sure I get this. You've been so respectful, distant even." Trowa held up his hands, "I mean I expected some distance, but ..." he glanced down, "I thought we would still be able to talk to each other."

Quatre reached forward, "Make up with your short, blonde asshole first." He clapped Trowa twice on the arm, "I want to meet him. I haven't lorded it over someone for so long."

"About the asshole thing—" Trowa started, but was interrupted as Quatre got out the car and slammed the door.

* * *

The services had serviceable coffee. Duo shifted his chair to be a little closer to Heero, leaning over under the pretext of looking at a pamphlet. He pointed at a picture of a hotel. "So, it looks like we're going to be staying here."

Out of the corner of his eye, Heero nodded his head and under the table, risked stroking his hand up Duo's thigh. It was thrilling, even though Quatre and Wufei had gone in search of toilets and Trowa was outside, sorting through the mass of messages Jules had left him.

Despite this, Heero still kept his voice low. "Think we can arrange to share a room?"

"I think that's very likely, unless Wufei wants a room of his own." Duo replied, raising one hand to scratch the side of his nose. "If that happens, then we might find ourselves having to split up."

"Hmm." Heero's hand wandered up Duo's thigh, "That could prove a challenging situation." It wandered back down to his knee. "A challenge," his voice dipped a shade, "I would relish."  
"Oh really?" Duo turned his head, surprised by how close Heero was.  
Heero's eyes were steady and dark, his expression blank but for a smirk that toyed with the corner of his lip. "I would love a shower."  
Even at the slight reference to that first morning, Duo felt his body react. He smiled slyly. "Would you?"  
"Hmm." Heero's steady blue eyes slipped off him, and he moved back slightly, his hand moving slowly away to appear casual. Duo shook his head at him ever so slightly.  
"Oh, it's on now." He muttered, turning to look up. Trowa was approaching, his attention solidly on his phone. He had just slipped into a seat opposite when it started to ring.  
"You'd think we were far enough into the boonies, I wouldn't get signal." Trowa muttered before answering the call. "Hi."  
Heero and Duo exchanged a look.  
"No." Trowa stared ahead. "No." There was a longer pause. "No. I won't." There was another pause, during which Wufei and Quatre returned. They sat down around the table, and exchange looks with each other. Trowa rose from the table, and began pacing. Every time he passed the table, he seemed to be listening and then answering, "No."  
Quatre threw a quizzical look at Duo, "Who?"  
"Jules, probably." Duo shrugged. "Not one to take a no is our Jules."  
Heero frowned as he watched Trowa, "I never quite understood why Trowa decided to start dating him."  
Wufei spluttered over coffee while Duo barked a harsh laugh. Heero and Quatre looked at each other before looking at the others, confusion rising. Duo leant over the table to pat Wufei on the back, who eventually brought his coughing fit under control.  
"You are kidding, right?" Wufei asked Heero, "I mean..." He gestured Quatre.  
"What?"  
Duo's laughter was back again, Wufei rolled his eyes. "Did you even look at the photos in the group chat? Jules looks like Quatre."  
"No! He doesn't!" Quatre looked scandalised before leaning forward to smirk, making sure to raise his voice enough as Trowa made a pass by the table. "He can't possible look like me! At least the pictures I've seen don't measure up!"  
Wufei slapped the table as he started laughing so hard he had to turn away. Trowa clapped a hand over the microphone half of his phone, glaring at Quatre. Quatre calmly raised a middle finger and smiled beautifully. Duo blinked in confusion at the exchange, and glanced at Heero - relieved to see the other man was as confused as he was.  
"Should I ask, Quatre?" Duo said as Wufei had to stand up and walk away from the table. "I mean, what the hell? Also, follow up question: When did you see pictures of Jules?"  
"Jules seems to think sending pictures of his genitals will change Trowa's mind." Quatre said, adopting the most innocent pose he could, swirling his coffee as he spoke. "Of course, who wouldn't be swayed by -"  
"Please." Wufei returned to the table, holding up a hand. "Mercy."  
Quatre shrugged lightly, and sipped his coffee. Trowa passed again, detouring to lightly clip Quatre around the back of the head. Quatre snorted, clearly enjoying himself.  
Duo chuckled, shaking his head. "What are you doing?"  
"Totally not being a Final Girl." Quatre finished his drink. "Can't be Final Girl if I'm too much of an asshole to live."  
Duo had to get up then, and walk around the table to hug Quatre, "Now you're getting it, buddy." He straightened and bounced on his toes, scratching the side of his nose. Trowa made another pass by the table. Duo made a complicated movement as Trowa passed, and started walking in the other direction with Trowa's phone. He held it to his ear and listened for a few moments, "Yeah, yeah, no. Hold up, Jules, wait. Yeah, no, no, no, Duo. No I'm the other one. I mean, sure Trowa and I have slept together, like, once but like, we were drunk and it was weird." He held the phone away from him for a while, while the other side screamed down the phone. Duo listened again for a moment, and then said, "Yeah, no. I'm the other one. No, you're thinking of Wufei. No, Wufei is the angry one. No, that one was Heero, Heero's the one with- You know what, never mind. Have you spoken to Becky lately?"  
Trowa sat down beside Quatre, who rested his chin in his hand, leaning forward. There was a lazy, knowing smile on his face.  
"So, Jules looks like—"

"Yes, he looks like you." Trowa let his head drop to the table. "Why is this happening to me?"

"I should imagine because you dumped this poor short, blonde asshole without really explaining why, and thinking it would all be ok if you just left him." Quatre sipped his coffee. "And then you started dating someone who looked exactly like him but was actually just a psycho who sends unwanted dick photos when he doesn't get his way." Quatre patted him twice on the back, "But don't let that get you down, sport." He got up and held out his hand to Duo.

Duo glanced between him and Trowa, Trowa shrugged with his chin moodily on the table. "Please tell me how it could be worse."

Thinking about it for a moment, Duo also shrugged and handed the phone to Quatre. "Preach it, brother."

Quatre took a deep breath and held the phone to his ear. Duo moved to sit down next Heero and picked up the tray as if it would provide any kind of cover.

"Hello Jules, I'm Quatre." Quatre said, he waited a moment. "No. I'm the other one. No, the other one. No, the… Who the hell is Becky?" He paused and then held up a hand, "Do yourself a favour and quickly do a search on Gundam zero four. I'll wait." He did wait, taking a moment to look back at the others with a gentle smile. "Ah, good, we're on the same page. Yes, I am. Yes, I did. No, it was evacuated at the time. Yes, I did try to but he's hard-headed as you know. Yes, I used to. No, we broke up. No, he thought I was clingy." He paused for a moment, "Uh huh. Listen, when we get back, how about you, me and Trowa all go out for dinner?" He listened, looking at his nails. "He did? Yes, I did know. No, I didn't care. No, it was after we broke up." He listened, casting an amused look at Trowa, "Yes, they were drunken consenting adults."

Trowa frowned.

"No, Duo's slept with all of us."

Duo got up and violently gestured Wufei. Wufei threw up his hands at Quatre.

"Oh, except Wufei." Quatre caught sight of Heero's raised eyebrows, "Oh! And apparently Heero … which is surprising. Relena's going to be disappointed. Hmm, maybe it's just been me and Trowa." He listened, rolling his eyes, "No, not at the same time. I mean, I wouldn't say no…"


	9. Skin the bricks

**Disclaimer**: hahahahahahaha… I'm so old. You know the score.

**Notes**: Wufei proves why he's still single. Heero and Duo try to console him.

_**Song**__: Skin – She's on_

* * *

_And when the birds in the trees_

_Give up all their seeds_

_I'm gonna eat my fill_

_I'm gonna skin the bricks_

_Gonna play for kicks_

_And make it seedy_

* * *

**Eldritch Holiday**

By Doctor Megalomania

* * *

_Like a dog in hell_

_I'm gonna bite to kill_

* * *

**Chapter 8** – Skin the bricks

* * *

The next services they stopped at was dull, the coffee was brackish brown water, the rain had started and not stopped, and Wufei was getting frustrated with whatever was up with Heero and Duo. Quatre just smiled serenely every time they made an exchange, and Trowa was too preoccupied with his phone to notice the weird looks they kept giving each other. Wufei was surprised as Duo threw his hands up in frustration when Wufei announced he was looking to book a room he didn't need to share with anyone. He wasn't quite sure what plan he'd wreaked. Wandering away from the group, he stood under the crappy outdoor shelter provided by the services. A truck pulled up, and a woman jumped down. She reached back into the cab, and grabbed a rucksack. Waving goodbye to the driver, she jogged over to the shelter. She was soaked by the time she reached the shelter.

Wufei stepped out of the way of the door to allow her to jog past him with her head down. He found a different spot to lean against, staring unseeingly across the wide road. The rain just fell. Nothing poetic. It just flung itself down.

The road had been so dry; it was almost like the ground didn't really know what to do with the rain. Large drops just jumped off the ground. It was so weird. For a moment, Wufei could almost swear it was like it was raining upwards-

"Are you in, like, a meditative trance or something?"

He blinked out of his daze and looked to his right. The woman from before was stood near him. Her rucksack was on the ground beside her, dusty and travel-worn. She leaned against the wall on the other side of the door. He shook his head.

"Ok." She shrugged and pulled her hood down. She had the most shockingly orange hair he'd ever seen. She blinked as she noticed his stare. "Are you alright?"

"I've never seen such...breathtakingly orange hair." He said, amazement flooding him. In the dull landscape, she was like a-

"Sunset." She touched the back of her shoulder length hair, and reddish strands showed through from under the orange. She seemed a little flustered by his remark. "I was going for a sunset."

"You got it." He nodded, forcing himself to look away again. "Sorry." Found himself drawn back.

"Never seen someone with dyed hair?"

"Not in my circle of work, no."

She laughed quietly, "Your work sounds really boring."

He tilted his head, frowning. "It's very honourable."

"Honourable maybe, but you don't deny it's boring."

"Regulations—"

"Ugh." She rolled her eyes dramatically, making a loud snoring noise before pretending to wake up. "Sorry, I just passed out for a moment." She held up a hand in a stopping motion, "Please don't say my trigger words."

Wufei surprised himself by laughing with her. He held out a hand, "I'm Chang—"

"Wufei." She replied quickly, taking his hand and stepping closer. "I know." She gestured inside, "I saw the famous one and then realised there were all five of you here."

"Which one's the famous one?"

"Obviously the one with the—" She was interrupted by a trucker walking out of the service area. The trucker waved over.

"I'm ready to go!"

"Coming!" The sunset haired woman called back. She shook Wufei's hands once hard, "That's my ride. Nice meeting you, Wufei." She bent over to grab her backpack, slinging it over her shoulder and pulling her wet hood back over her hair. She started jogging after the trucker and paused before the corner, charmingly hopping quickly from one foot to the other as if she was nervous. "I'm Riko! See ya!" She waved and disappeared around the corner.

The door opened, and Wufei blinked to see Heero standing there. "Are you ready to go?"

Wufei sighed. "Yeah."

Heero glanced at him and then glanced at the corner Wufei was still staring at. "Did you at least get her number?"

Wufei sighed again. "No."

Heero shook his head. "This is why you're still single, Wufei."

Wufei frowned and looked at him. "Like you can talk."

Heero opened his mouth, closed it, and then said stiffly; "Yes. I am too a still single man."

"... What?"

"She seemed to have very orange hair." Heero said quickly. "It looked unusual."

Wufei felt the same amazement flood back at the memory of the woman's hair, "It was like the sunset."

"Yes." Heero narrowed his eyes towards the corner, "She would be terrible on a mission. Her noticeable hair would make it difficult to engage in subterfuge. You were right not to get her number."

Duo joined them, "We're almost ready to go." He jerked a thumb behind them. "They're gonna be a moment. Jules texted me to tell me to keep me away from Trowa. He's getting tedious now. Trowa looks ready to destroy his phone." He breathed out, sounding vaguely uninterested. "So I texted Jules Quatre's number."

Wufei made a very confused face, "Why would you do that?"

"I dunno, seemed like a good idea. I was bored and Trowa needed a break." Duo jammed his hands into his pockets, "Who was the orange haired chick?"

"Riko." Wufei replied. "Her name was Riko."

"Oh cool, cool. Did you get her number?"

Heero shook his head, while Wufei pinched his nose and closed his eyes. "No."

"Now, see? That's why you're still single, Wufei."

Wufei levelled a sour look at him, while Heero patted his shoulder. "It's hard being single men."

Wufei didn't quite fully catch the look Heero gave Duo, and presumed it was some kind of stern look because Duo quickly followed up with a consoling tone, "Yes. Being single, I know, yes. I am single too. It sucks. I'm here for you, buddy."

"Speaking of being here for us…" Wufei rolled his eyes and glared at Duo sourly, "_And_ Quatre?"

Duo flicked a glance at Heero before nodded, "Oh, yeah. It was weird. Kinda like painting your fingernails… You know it's your own and yet."

"And _Trowa?_" Wufei folded his arms.

Duo shrugged, "Seemed like a good idea at the time." He shrugged again, tutted and looked away, his lips showing his remembrance of the incident with a look of disgust. "It was not." Shaking his head, he sighed and muttered. "Freaky clown sex."

That seemed to not be news to Heero who nodded sagely; Wufei side eyed them both before throwing up his hands and walking away. "I'm out."

"Don't you want to hear about Duo's freaky clown sex adventures?" Heero folded his arms, looking satisfied. "I'm fascinated."

"It was ONE TIME!" Duo held up his hands, "We were VERY drunk."

Once the door closed, Heero glanced over his shoulder to check if Wufei was out of sight. He glanced back at Duo. Duo looked back at him, anxiety dancing in his hands. Duo looked like he wanted to grip Heero's hands but didn't dare.

Heero reached out. "I knew you slept with Trowa."

"You..." Duo took his hand gladly, "You did?"

"You called me almost immediately afterwards." Heero shook his head, "You felt like it was like sleeping with a brother you said." He chuckled lightly and squeezed Duo's hands, "You really hadn't enjoyed it. Either of you apparently."

"I phoned you?" Duo looked mortified.

Heero stepped a bit closer to touch Duo's arm. "You were very drunk, a little sad."

"Does Trowa know?"

Heero looked to one side, debating. He looked back to Duo, "Yes. I thought he may have... upset you. I wanted to speak to him, ask him what happened. To see." He looked down for a moment, "To see if I needed to do anything. You seemed... fine a few days later. You didn't remember calling me. Trowa didn't seem to want to discuss it further."

"… Aw, shit."

Heero frowned, worried by the sadness in Duo's voice. He stepped forward further and dipped his free hand's fingers into Duo's hair. "Trowa is alright." He said, tucking a hair lock behind Duo's ear, lingering his fingers on Duo's ear. "I checked. You seemed fine as well."

"I am. I mean. It's… It was just after Bali though." Duo said, his mortification rising, "I mean you—"

"Duo." Heero slipped his hand into Duo's hair, pulling his head closer. They bumped foreheads. "I don't know how to describe what I feel for you right now. I don't feel any jealousy; I know I don't have any 'right' to you before I asked you out."

"But—"

"No." Heero was firm and gentle. "I made the mistake before; I'm not making this mistake with you." He opened his eyes; Duo's strangely coloured eyes were wide and worried. "You love loving people. You're so open with your affections. I don't want you to change. I want your affections exactly as they are."

Duo blinked slowly, letting his eyes close a moment before reopening them. "What happened to keeping this on the down-low?"

Heero pulled away slightly, only to feel Duo wrap his arms around his neck, pulling him in hard for a hug. He buried his nose into Duo's neck, feeling his warm breath against his ear.

"Thank you." Duo whispered. "I need this."

"Do you?" Heero pulled his hands up and pressed against Duo's back. "Won't it feel too much like sleeping with your brother?"

Duo let him go, and took a step back. "Not you." He glanced away. "You're my best friend."

"I'm glad." Heero said, "I'd really hate to have to give up the thrill I get from thinking about that shower."

"Yeah, I got that memory tucked away." Duo scrunched up his nose with a wicked grin. He moved to step past Heero, leaning into him to whisper, "I got off again that night thinking about how hard your hand can work it. Wondered if I could get you to snap those hips that hard-"

Heero turned to say something back, but was interrupted by Trowa walking out. "Right. Let's go." He said as he passed them.

Quatre and Wufei were not far behind him. Quatre paused by Duo, and reached out to wrap an arm around his shoulders. Despite being shorter, Quatre pulled Duo close with some force. "You know how Jules now has my number?"

"Yeah."

"I want you to know that you will taste bitter revenge before the end of this day."

"Oh really?" Duo chuckled daringly.

"Oh yes." Quatre smiled sweetly. "Oh yes, my dear friend. It will be brutal and swift."


	10. Face the long dark road alone

**Disclaimer**: hahahahahahaha… I'm so old. You know the score.

**Notes**: The pilots enter Happiness and you gotta wonder, has anyone got time for this?

_**Song**__: Client - Drive_

* * *

_Down down the backstreet_

_And you know I can't stop searching_

_I'm running from the nightmares_

_But I just can't stop the hurting_

_I feel like a loser_

_'Cause you won't god forgive me_

_I'll show I'm only human_

_Face the long dark road alone_

* * *

**Eldritch Holiday**

By Doctor Megalomania

* * *

_I want love I can't resist you_

_I cannot lose what I'm not gonna have_

* * *

**Chapter 9** – Face the long dark road alone

* * *

Quatre glanced into the rear view mirror: Duo was asleep, upright in the middle. Trowa, asleep, against the window. Wufei hadn't said anything since the last services. Heero was in the front, his small laptop casting a soft glow on his face.

It was night; Quatre was taking the final driving shift. He was getting a bit concerned as darkness fell and they still had not arrived. What was supposed to be a half day's travel had overrun by three hours. Heero tapped away at the laptop, he glanced up occasionally, trying to position himself. Quatre risked a glance over at him. Heero had pulled out his phone, frowning deeply. "What's wrong?"

"I can't seem to find us on a map." Heero sighed, "We should have at least started to see settlements."

Quatre smiled slightly, "I'm sure we'll find something soon."

"I'm concerned that I can't even get a GPS signal." He raised his phone, tapping at it twice. "I've lost mobile reception."

"Hmm." Quatre hummed, "Small mercies."

"Indeed."

"There's a few buildings ahead." Quatre said faintly. "It just feels like we never get closer to them." He tapped the steering wheel. "We might be sleeping out here tonight."

"Agreed." Heero replied, vague concern in his voice. "I think we might have a better chance in the daytime." Heero glanced over his shoulder, Quatre smiled warmly when he caught the concern on Heero's face.

"Duo's lucky you care so much." Quatre returned his attention to the road, but spoke in a quiet voice. "You should tell him."

"Tell him?"

"That you love him." Quatre sighed and said quietly, "I wish I'd told Trowa more." Heero didn't reply, and Quatre nodded. "I know. None of my business, but..." He smiled lopsidedly, risking a glance at Heero. "He doesn't always pick up on what other people feel or think."

"I think he does." Heero began typing away at his laptop. "He's not as unaware as people think."

Quatre chuckled, "If you think he's really going to notice that every pizza you buy for him is always magically his favourite pizza—"

"I like it too."

"You prefer some green on your pizza." Quatre reached out blindly, and was gratified when Heero caught his hand. "I'm so glad for you. You two would be good for each other."

"I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"That you—"

"Don't be." Quatre said quickly, not quite snatching back his hand. He clamped it on the steering wheel. "I messed it up. We both messed up."

"I did the same to Relena." Heero confessed after a long moment. "I thought I didn't need to reassure her of my thoughts and feelings. That she should have known." He glanced over his shoulder again, "I won't let it be the same."

"I look forward to seeing you together."

"Thank you."

Feeling the exhaustion now and spotting a layby, Quatre sighed, "I think I'll pull in here. We can get some sleep and then wait for dawn."

"Agreed." Heero typed a few notes on to his laptop. Quatre pulled over and shut off the engine. He undid his seat belt and turned to face Heero. He watched as the focused man finish typing his sentence and reached up to close the lid of his laptop.

The sound of it snapping shut was so loud both of them jumped.

There was a tap on the glass behind Quatre and, wide eyed, Quatre swivelled around. Duo was looking in the window, concerned. Quatre stared at him, mouth falling open. Duo was standing on a small car park, full daylight behind him. The building behind him was a hotel, with vacancies. The sign above the door read 'MAZZEM'. Wufei was walking up the stairs carrying luggage. Trowa was just walking out of the building, moving to help Wufei.

Duo looked bemused, tapping on the window again. He moved to open the door. "Hey, you guys ok?" He glanced between them, "You look like you've seen a ghost..."

Quatre turned to look at Heero, the other man's eyes wide in confusion. "We..." Quatre looked back at Duo, "It was night."

Duo frowned, "What?"

"It was night, just now. We..." Quatre looked at Heero again, "It was night. We had pulled over on the side of the road, because we ... We hadn't found..." Quatre moved to step out of the vehicle, his legs uncertain. The vehicle was parked in a space in front of the hotel, off road. "We hadn't found the town, so we stopped. It was night!"

Duo reached out to grab Quatre, as his shaky legs let him down. Trowa came leaping down the stairs to gather Quatre in his arms, while Duo got up to check Heero. The other man was in the vehicle still, staring at his laptop.

Duo leaned in and grabbed Heero's arm, "Are you ok?"

Heero frowned, turning his laptop to Duo. He pointed at a line. "I wrote this." He pointed to another line below it. "I did not write this."

Duo crawled into the car, pulling the laptop closer.

_Mission update 2345: Parking. 04 will resume driving once there is light. _

_Missionupdate4251230resumedrivingresumedrivingresumedrivingresumedriving_

He looked at Heero with concern. Heero shook his head, "We stopped. We did not resume driving." He spoke clearly, though his eyes started to swim as if he couldn't focus. "We stopped and Quatre undid his seat belt." He looked down at his hands, "I closed my laptop and then..." Heero looked at Duo, breathing heavily as the strength to stay awake fled him. "And then we were here."

Heero's dark blue eyes rolled in his head and he slumped forward.

* * *

It came back in bits. First patches of light and then colour and sound. Quatre felt one eye blink and then the other, and then finally both eyes opened at the same time. He felt warmth on his forehead, and then he began to understand what he could hear. Trowa, sounding annoyed, repeating "No." ever so often.

The warmth on his forehead shifted ever so often and he recognised the gesture. Trowa had spent plenty of mornings, when Quatre was sick in bed, brushing his hair away from his forehead, gently reminding him he wasn't alone. Quatre allowed himself two minutes. Two minutes total. He would let himself lie there, pretending to be asleep, enjoying the sensation of being cared for by his lover again before he'd 'wake up'.

After a minute punctuated with Trowa's increasingly exasperated voice getting quieter but firmer, "No." Quatre decided he didn't need the full allotted pity time he'd given himself permission to wallow in. He raised a hand to tap Trowa's, and opened his eyes. Trowa looked down and snatched back his hand, mild alarm in his eyes as if he hadn't realised what he was doing. Something in his eyes flashed before falling flat, something Jules said made his eyes turn as cold as the day he left Quatre. It made Quatre struggle to sit up and roll away from Trowa. He heard Trowa get up and pace to the window, hard now in his voice. "You're just repeating a conversation we've already had. It's over, Jules. Lose my number."

A moment passed before the bed dipped again, and Quatre felt Trowa tentatively touch his shoulder.

"I'm sorry." Trowa started, sounding annoyed. Quatre looked over his shoulder. Trowa was looking at his phone. "I didn't mean to wake you, I was just... I just wanted to make sure ... You've been asleep for a couple of hours. I wanted to make sure you were comfortable. I shouldn't have answered my phone here."

"It's fine." Quatre said, scooting across the bed. He put his feet down and took a look around the room. It was a twin room; his and Trowa's things were scattered on the other bed. "We're sharing?" He glanced over his shoulder.

Trowa nodded, "They only had two doubles and a twin. Wufei was prepared to pay extra for his own space; Duo carried Heero into the other double and slammed the door. So, yeah, we're sharing."

"I need to add Wufei to the revenge list." Quatre said faintly to himself. He smiled when Trowa made a quiet snort. He got up and pulled on the bathrobe provided. Pulling it tight, he walked over to the window and stared out. The town was quiet, bathed in beautiful sunshine. Various people walked down the street, some walking dogs. There was a weird statue on the street; it looked like a person standing as if they were going to cross the street.

"I'm sorry."

Quatre blinked, looking over his shoulder. "For waking me? It's really fine."

"No. I mean about Jules."

"Oh that? I'm sure eventually he'll figure out that Duo's not your ex, and that I'm the one he should be worrying about." He blinked. "I mean because I'm your ex. Not Duo." He closed his eyes as he realised the other implication, "And you know, not because there's anything to worry about. It's not like we're going to get back together."

He turned around when Trowa didn't say anything. Trowa was sat, head hanging down and hands loosely clasped around his phone. "It's fine, Trowa. Your ex is upset. He'll get over it. He won't want to, but he will get over it." He swallowed on the words and then said quietly, "Eventually."

Trowa gripped his phone, as if suddenly angry. "I don't mean." He stopped, took a long deep breath. "I don't mean about Jules doing this stupid shit. I mean." He looked up, dark green eyes shining with tears. "I mean I'm sorry you found out he looks like you. That..." He looked away, as if he was ashamed. He breathed deeply.

"It's okay, Trowa." Quatre said, trying for breezy. "You clearly have a type."

"I didn't date him because he... appeals."

Quatre tilted his head, confused. "That's not how it usually works."

Trowa looked at him, directly, "I dated him because he looks like you."

Quatre felt the breath leave him, heart sinking with disappointment. "That's..." he swallowed, and found himself frowning, "That's not fair to Jules."

"I know."

Quatre turned away, not certain what he felt and what he could feel rolling off in waves from Trowa. He took a deep breath and tried to find the weird statue. He blinked, confused for a moment before he saw it on the other side of the street. He frowned, he was sure that-

"I miss you."

He turned around, "You dumped me."

"I know."

"And now you started sleeping with someone because they look like me."

"Yes."

"Instead of simply picking up the phone, and talking to me."

"Yep."

Quatre nodded bitterly disappointed and feeling righteous, and walked towards the door. "You and Jules, you totally deserve each other."

He wrenched the door open and stopped dead when he came face to face with Wufei. Wufei looked flushed, embarrassed. Quatre closed his eyes for a moment, realising he was once again subjecting his friends to an argument. He opened his eyes, "Hi."

Wufei looked at him for a moment, dark eyes glancing off to Trowa who remained behind him. "Morning." Wufei said cautiously, "Are we ready to meet?"

"No. I." Quatre closed his mouth, not sure what he was going to really say. He forced himself to stand taller; he knew what he had to do. "Trowa and I need to talk first. We'll be out soon."

Wufei nodded, reaching forward to touch Quatre's elbow. "Are you okay?"

"No." Quatre replied honestly, "But I will be after we talk. If I want to get better, I need to make sure I stop doing the same things and expecting a different result." He drew a deep breath and closed the door again, turning to face Trowa.

* * *

As Heero came around, he wondered where he was. For a moment he wondered which school he was in, which mission he was on. His memory began to come back in patches, but he lay still, trying to identify what the soothing repeating sound was. He wondered where he was.

It was a repeating set of clicks which would stop for a while, and then the reverse would happen.

It was soothing.

It was…

Duo taking a gun apart and then putting it back together. It made Heero force himself further awake. It brought back memories of missions together, it brought back memories of waking up to the repeating clicks of a gun being cleaned.

"What are you doing?" Heero had once asked, emotionlessly. It had been early, very early. The sounds had dragged him out of his deep sleep after a tiring mission. Duo had been sat on his bed, staring at his hands without really seeing. For a moment, Heero had thought it was some kind of trance.

"Can't sleep. I didn't clean my gun." Duo spoke, faintly. Heero watched him clean his gun twice before getting up and sitting on the bed. "What's up?"

"You've cleaned your gun several times now."

"Huh." Duo had said, eyes still anxious. "I know, but I keep thinking maybe I've missed something."

"Duo." Heero reached out and gently laid his hands on the gun. Duo didn't react, blinking slowly. "Put it down. You have cleaned it. It's time to go to sleep."

"Are you sure?" Duo's voice had been almost plaintive.

Heero had nodded; he knew this feeling well. "I've watched you do it correctly twice now. Yes."

The memory faded and Heero blinked twice before turning over to sit up in bed. Duo was sat at the table, a gun in front of him. He'd laid it down, and was now staring at it morosely. He got up from the table, but his hands clenched and he sat down again and began pulling the gun apart.

Heero shifted to put his feet on the floor. He checked over his body, realising he was actually fine. None of the previous nausea or dizziness was present. He stood and walked over to Duo. He placed a hand on Duo's shoulder. Duo was tense.

"I'm sorry." Duo said, his voice unexpectedly quiet. "I don't know what happened. I spoke to Wufei and Trowa, they weren't awake either. We don't know how we got here." He tapped the laptop in front of him, "I read your notes. You'd been driving for hours already. You pulled over. And then we woke up in front of the hotel. You had clearly driven us there, but the pair of you weren't really saying anything. Just staring ahead."

"Yes." Heero sat in a chair near Duo, "It appears we experienced a…" he struggled to find the right term. "Time skip."

Heero watched Duo's jaw work for a moment before Duo turned on a stretched grin, "Yay!"

"I haven't been harmed." Heero reached out and touched Duo's hand. "I'm operational."

"Perfect soldier." Duo muttered, his false grin fading for a moment. He looked at Heero's hand, turning his own hand to grasp Heero's wrist. "This was supposed to be a stupid—"

"Closed circle." Heero squeezed Duo's hand. "You need to say I'm right."

Duo looked at him for a very long moment, before nodding. "Yeah, no. Cosmic horror, man."

"Based on my current evidence, we are definitely in a closed circle." Heero nodded, pleased to see Duo rousing himself.

"Yeah, no. Cosmic horror." Duo motioned Heero's laptop, "We've got to start planning for this. Do you remember anything, like a landmark or weird noise?" He got up to get his bag, his chair unexpectedly falling over with a loud crash -

\- and was surprised to see Wufei at the door across the dining room with a woman he recognised.

He looked around himself; Heero stared at the bowl of soup with surprise. Next to him, Trowa jumped. Quatre coughed suddenly around the glass of water he was drinking.

"Holy fucking shitballs." Duo blinked and raised a hand to wave at Wufei and the woman.


	11. Lead me into denial

**Disclaimer**: hahahahahahaha… I'm so old. You know the score.

**Notes**: Wufei takes a shower. Trowa keeps using a word but I'm not sure he knows what it means.

_**Song**__: Celldweller – Stay With Me (Unlikely)_

* * *

_There's so much on my mind, we're given so little time_

_there's no way to hold on as it passes by_

_so lead me into denial, help me forget for awhile_

_stay with me, please please don't go_

_Stay with me, please don't go_

_I don't want to be alone_

* * *

**Eldritch Holiday**

By Doctor Megalomania

* * *

_Whatever words they say (me who said it)_

_whomever they betray (me who did it)_

_whenever they're awake it makes me die_

* * *

**Chapter 10** – Lead me into denial

Wufei sat with a cup of tea, staring out the window. The hotel's small dining room was well appointed with a number of breakfast tables, and constant coffee and tea available. Unlike his room which overlooked the surprisingly nice garden, the dining room overlooked the street and the car park. The staff at the hotel seemed to prefer to remain out of sight.

With the others tucked away in their rooms, Wufei had found himself settling quickly into his room. A refreshing shower later, Wufei wandered down stairs for a small breakfast. His tablet only picked up a single bar of network, so he picked up a local newspaper and sat near a window. He ate while flicking through the newspaper, and then sat watching the street while sipping his tea. There was a billboard advertisement, not fully in view. From what he could read of the slogan - it seemed to say 'looking for purpose?' - the woman on the left side of the board faced away, hands on her hips facing a sunset. He was lost in the detail of the red flowers in the grass below her feet.

There was a loud noise, like a car misfiring.

He jumped, jostling his tea. He grabbed a napkin to dab it up.

A pick-up truck pulled up and a woman jumped down. Her hood was familiar. Wufei sat forward, tea forgotten. Grabbing her rucksack, and waving at the driver as they moved on, she turned. She seemed to look up at the vacancies sign on the hotel's main signage and then looked at her phone. Her lips twisted into a disappointed look and she stood for a moment, looking around. Pulling the straps on her rucksack tighter, she seemed to consider the hotel before shaking her head and walking off.

Wufei got up and sprinted to the door as it looked she was walking away.

"Riko!" He raised his hand and waved as he burst through the door. He slowed to a jog as he approached her in the car park. She was frowning deeply as she got closer to him. He smiled nervously, "What's wrong?"

"You..." She frowned again, and brought out her phone. Looking over her shoulder, Riko seemed to search the street. Looking back at him, she moved a little closer and looked him up and down, "I mean... I knew your Gundams were fast but..." She suddenly shook her head and jabbed him in the shoulder with her fist. Her eyes widened and she stumbled backward in surprise. "Oh shit! You are real!"

Rocking only slightly, Wufei found himself impressed with the strength in the punch. "Do you punch all the new people you meet?" Smiling, he tilted his head in confusion, "Are you ok?"

"I just left you behind in the services."

He looked at her with bemusement, "That was yesterday."

She looked horrified. "No, that was this morning. I mean, I left you behind." She gestured down the street. "You- you were there this morning. I..." She raised a hand to push her hood down. "I swear - I left you there this morning. Like-like two hours ago…!"

Wufei took a quick breath, looking her over. Her hoodie was damp, dazzling sunset hair still the same.

"We drove through..." He glanced over his shoulder at their vehicle. "Or at least we think we drove through the night." He nodded, making his mind up. "Come on. We should talk to the others." He looked back for a moment, to explain to her. "We lost time yesterday." He turned away and started walking toward the hotel, "Have you already got a place to stay?"

"No, I was going to stay at this hotel but—"

"There's still room."

She grimaced, "Not according to the vacancies sign."

Wufei rolled his eyes, pausing, "Of course, we took the last three rooms."

"Uh huh." Riko nodded, she kept going forward. "But let's figure out how the hell you got ahead of me." She paused and turned to him, sticking out her hand with determination. He took her hand and shook it; her hand was rough with use. "Riko Matsumi. I should have introduced myself properly, I've been thinking about it all morning! It's not often you meet your superhero and-"

"Matsumi?" Wufei repeated, uncertain he'd heard correctly. "What are you doing here?"

"Yeah," She pulled up her rucksack. "My auntie invited me to come join her; she said my degree might be useful."

"You... you've heard from your aunt?"

"Not directly, she's working with this guy called—"

"Professor Leighton?"

Riko stopped dead and took a half-step away from him. "Yeah, how'd you know?"

"It's... a complicated and stupid story. We're here to look for your aunt." Wufei raised a hand to pinch his nose; he could feel the onset of a headache. "Tell you what; if you're okay with me sleeping on the couch, you can have the bed in my room." He reached forward and grabbed her elbow, "We really need to talk."

"Whoa!" She said, but stumbled forward with him. "Wait, you know my aunt? Wait, my aunt knows famous Gundam Pilots and she didn't tell me!?" She pulled her arm out of his grasp, "What the hell is going on here?!"

* * *

As Wufei walked through into the dining room, he was surprised to find the room virtually full. Riko bumped into him, causing him to grasp her hand. "Are you ok?" She asked quietly.

Wufei glanced at her, "It was empty when I left." He looked past her, down the reception hall and saw that outside, it was getting dark.

"What's wrong?" She looked up at him, and turned to look the same way. "Wait… It wasn't evening when we walked in."

"It was not."

"What the shit is happening." It wasn't a question, she sounded almost angry. She looked up at him, holding his hand tighter.

He was unsettled, "I don't know. I don't know what's going on. Just… stay close." He turned and looked around the room. He saw Duo – stood by a table, surprise on his face mouthing something that looked like 'Holyforkingshirtballs'- wave at him, and made his way over to the table. The four other pilots were sat around a table for six. Trowa was staring at his soup like it would poison him. Wufei approached the table, bringing Riko's hand up with his to introduce her. "This is Riko. We just met outside, and it was early afternoon."

"It was morning. Quatre and I were just talking…" Trowa said, looking up. His face concerned. "Have we lost time again?"

"Time skips." Duo nodded, jabbing the table with a finger decisively. "Heero and I were just sitting at the table in our room. Now we're here." He looked around, "And I'm fairly sure it wasn't getting on to evening." As he turned back, his lips tugged into an unwilling smirk. "Oh yeah, we've gotten ourselves into some prime schmuck bait."

Quatre leant forward, shoving aside his soup. "Losing time is no small thing. There's technology out there that allows it to happen… but in small confined areas, like mobile suits… not whole towns." He shook his head, and stood holding a hand out to Riko. "Quatre—"

"Winner. I know." Riko gave his hand a brief shake. She looked around them and rolled her eyes at their confusion. "Shit, boys, it's not like you saved the earth sphere and the colonies in an epic battle twice. You're a little famous." She moved to sit down and Wufei sat opposite her. She glanced at him before looking at the rest of them. "I'm Riko Matsumi." She waited for the shock to ripple through all of them, "Yes. Wufei tells me you're looking for my Auntie. Professor Leighton emailed me to tell me that she'd asked me to come. I have a degree in astrophysics…"

"Did Professor Leighton sound out of sorts? Not quite like himself?" Duo asked, his strange coloured eyes bright. "Maybe a little deep voice evil guy…"

"I… what?" Riko said, turning her attention to Wufei, "What did he just say?"

"Don't even try," Wufei shook his head, waving Duo off. "The message Leighton sent, did it sound like him?"

"I don't know." Riko shrugged, she dug out her phone and tapped at it. "I've never met him. My Auntie sent me a few emails before, but then she lost connection. Leighton said she was finding it difficult, and that I should come as soon as possible. It was top secret, and I should hitch-hike… " Dropping her phone to the table, she clapped her hands over her eyes and groaned. "Oh my fucking god, I walked into a trap!"

"Shh." She opened her eyes as Duo touched her shoulder, "It's okay. We all walked into a trap."

"Did you know?"

"Yes."

"Then why did you come? You actively decided to walk into this trap." She asked, holding a hand out plaintively. "Is this, like, a preventer's mission?"

"Oh no." Duo sat down again, picking up a breadstick and chewing it. "I'm on holiday."

"I'm here to protect him." Heero gestured Duo.

Trowa gestured Quatre, "I'm here to protect him from him."

"I'm here because I'm not over breaking up with him and I wanted to do something incredibly stupid to distract myself." Quatre chuckled mirthlessly, gesturing Trowa.

Riko looked at Wufei; Wufei was slumped low in his chair, arms folded with annoyance. She smiled, brightly, becoming amused with his stubborn silence. "Why are you here?"

"I'm here because apparently I'm at danger of joining evil organisations when the others aren't with me."

Wufei rolled his eyes at her incredulous laughter.

* * *

Wufei opened his room's door, and gestured Riko to go in first. She slipped off her rucksack, and knelt to take off her boots. Wufei took his own shoes off, and walked into retrieve his bag from the bed. Riko moved around the room, pausing by the table. "You've brought guns?"

"We're prepared for a mission with multiple outcomes."

"I mean, like…" She gestured the table, he'd brought a small selection of weapons. "Are you expecting a war?"

"Heero's run multiple scenarios." Wufei cleared away his things and shook out the blanket. "The worst case we are prepared for is pirates."

Riko cocked her hips as she folded her arms, her expression unimpressed. "What do you have for time skips?"

"Don't underestimate how prepared Heero is." He shrugged; "I might not have it, but I'm sure he will have something." He held up a virtuous finger, reciting, "If a situation exists, Heero Yuy is prepared for it."

"You guys are so weird." Riko sat down on the bed, looking at him. He moved to prepare the sofa. "I mean, like I didn't know that those two guys had broken up… shit, I didn't even know they were dating. Mr Quatre Reberba Winner was my back-up plan – the most eligible bachelor in all the colonies, two years running."

"Your what now?"

"You know, everyone has a back-up plan for when their life doesn't pan out. Don't judge me."

Wufei straightened from fluffing a pillow. "I'm not sure I follow."

"Well, never mind. He's gay!" Riko threw herself on the bed. "Guess, if plan A doesn't work out now, I'll have to go with plan C – How's that Peacecraft woman doing?" She propped herself up on her elbows, tilting her head as she asked casually. "So, which one of them are you dating?"

He shook his head and sat down on the sofa, stretching himself out. After a long moment, he felt he should answer. "I'm not dating any of them." It was a hard thing, but he'd slept on worse. He felt the pain of a tension headache bloom in his head. Out on the street, there was a loud noise, like a car back-firing. Taking a deep breath, he focused on relaxing his body for sleep. He cracked open one eye, when he felt the woman lean over the back.

"You didn't need to do this for me." She said, her voice low. "Thank you."

"Don't worry; we've all slept on worse surfaces." He closed his eye again; "Just try to get some sleep. There's no rhyme or reason to the time skips."

When she didn't move, he opened his eyes again. Her dark eyes were momentarily sad; it looked like she wanted to say something before she blinked and nodded. "Good night, Wufei."

"Night, Riko."

* * *

When he opened his eyes again, he stared at the ceiling. His body certainly felt like he'd spent the night on a hard old sofa. It made him feel oddly relieved. Shifting to put his feet on the floor, Wufei got up in a fluid motion and picked up a fresh towel and his wash bag. He glanced at the bed; Riko was a messy sleeper. Her leg stuck out from under the blanket, her pillow bunched up under her neck. Sunset coloured hair fanned out over her face and arms were akimbo. He took a moment to appreciate the firm muscles he could see, mind quietly assessing her as an asset.

He shook his head at himself and went into the bathroom. Setting his towel down, he stripped off and stretched before getting into the shower. He washed himself, efficiently. Stood under the hot water for a while, washed his hair. Running his hands over himself, his fingers lingered on a scar on his elbow. Red flowers flashed in his mind's eye. He swallowed hard and pressed against the scar harder. He dashed his head under the shower's stream again, angrily turning the water to cold. Gritting his teeth, he focused on his breath. In. Hold. Out. Hold.

Forced his hands against the wall, spreading his fingers wide.

"Wufei?"

He gasped, and looked to his right. The shower stall's frosted window hid her features, but couldn't hide the brilliance of her hair. She wasn't facing him.

"Wufei, your phone's been ringing." Riko's voice was rough from sleep. She stretched to hold his phone up above the shower wall so he could see the screen. "Who do you hate so much to label them as 'that stupid bastard'?" There was amusement in her voice. "I mean, I didn't think Gundam Pilots were allowed to hate people…?"

"You'd be surprised." He replied, still tense.

"Sorry to barge in on you." She said, dropping her hand. "The phone's been ringing like every two minutes."

"Yes, I've failed to answer." Wufei shook his head, and reached to switch the shower off. "The stupid bastard will keep trying but he'll get the hint eventually. Just hang up."

"Is that…" She paused, "Was that a cold shower?"

"Yes."

"I mean, like, I totally read somewhere that you used to seek out waterfalls and stand under them but I just figured that was a racist caricature of your Asian warrior stereotype… Huh." She leaned against the shower stall, arms folded. "Now, I'm questioning was I adding in my own bias in my determination to fight the racial stereotypes on your interaction with the media…?"

A harsh bark of a laugh erupted from him, taking both him and Riko by surprise. He pushed the door open, leaning carefully out, "I did stand under at least one waterfall during my childhood."

"What was it like?" She stood straight, eyes clearly interested in the concept. "I mean, I've always wanted to! I can imagine it being wonderfully toning."

"Your shoulders ache." He reached out for a towel, and was pleasantly surprised when she stepped forward to help him, and then turned her back. Wufei stepped out, wrapping his lower body with a towel securely before reaching for something to dry his hair with.

She stepped out of the bathroom for a moment, before returning. "The phone's ringing again."

He looked at the screen, his attention wandering up her arm. Lime green painted nails. A single tattoo of a bright blue flower on her inside wrist. Worn leather and bead bracelet. Golden skin. Lightly muscled upper arm, hint of a tattoo on her upper shoulder. Ripped short t-shirt, a flash of defined abs, boxer style shorts, a vine like tattoo that peaked around from the back and curvy hips that cocked to one side when she put a fist impatiently on her hip. The gesture made his eyes snap up.

A knowing smirk was on her lips.

"The phone?"

He closed his eyes for a moment, loosely gesturing her. "Sorry. You're … very well-toned for someone who isn't a solider."

"I work out." She said, amusement in her voice. "Anyway. Right back at you, pilot. Nearly a decade since the war?" She made an obvious show of looking him right up and down, "Gun_damn_, boy. What's your routine?"

Smirking at her, he dried his hands, and took the phone. Securing his towel in one hand, he answered the phone as he walked past Riko. "Hello Jules. Why are you calling me? No, I'm Wufei. No, I'm the other one. No, that's Heero. Who the hell is Becky?"

While Riko got into the shower herself, Wufei carefully dressed. While he had not brought his preventer uniform, he had brought the basics of it. Suitable trousers for combat situations, a vest, and a coat that served the same function as his uniform jacket – many secure pockets and decent armour protection. He strapped on a holster and armed himself carefully. He took his preventer credentials and tucked it into his coat. While they were officially on holiday, he didn't want to take any chances in case this needed to become a mission. He walked over to his phone, and picked it up. Finally, he pulled on his watch.

"Whoa." Riko sounded surprisingly impressed, "Superhero action man."

He turned to find Riko, towel held tight about her body. He finished tightening his watch, allowing himself a moment to contemplate the bright forget-me-not tattooed curling up her left ankle. "I'll leave you to get dressed." He looked away and picked up his tablet. "I'll be just outside the door."

"Think something might happen?"

He shrugged, "I have no idea. I'd rather not take any chances. Shout if you need me." Dipping his head in a nod, he stepped out of the room, closing the door behind him. He leant against the door, and took a moment to breath. Seeing bright blue flowers. In and hold and out and hold and in…

A door opened opposite him with an unusually loud clack. Quatre stepped out in his dressing gown. He looked angry. Wufei caught a glimpse of Trowa sitting on the bed behind him. Quatre saw him and - for a moment - closed his eyes. When he opened his eyes, Wufei saw regret in them. "Hi."

"Morning." Wufei glanced past him at Trowa, the other man didn't move. "Are you ready to meet?"

Quatre pursed his lips, frowning. He shook his head once, "No. I." He straightened his shoulders, "Trowa and I need to talk first. We'll be out soon."

Wufei nodded, reaching forward to touch Quatre's elbow. "Are you okay?"

"No." Quatre replied honestly, "But I will be after we talk. If I want to get better, I need to make sure I stop doing the same things and expecting a different result." The smile he gave as he sharply closed the door was regretful. Wufei shook his head. Trowa and Quatre had not been able to be able to simply 'talk' about their problems in the past. He found himself almost bracing for the raised voices.

He was surprised when the door opened again almost immediately, and Trowa stepped out wearing fresh clothes. Behind him – yawning widely - was Quatre who was also dressed in fresh clothing.

Wufei flicked a look between the two of them, until Quatre stopped. His bright blue eyes widened.

Trowa paused as he looked between Wufei and Quatre. "What's wrong?"

"I just saw you like this yesterday." Quatre said, he looked over his shoulder as if he could see into the past. "Just before we talked it out."

"I just saw you today. You said you needed to talk to Trowa, and then a few seconds later you both walked out." Wufei reached up and rubbed his forehead. "This is going to get a bit frustrating." A thought occurred to him, and he turned to knock on his own door. A few moments later, Riko opened it, dressed and ready. He thought it was odd to feel very relieved at her look of confusion. "Are you ready?"

"Sure. Just trying to connect to the hotel internet."

"Don't bother," Wufei shook his head, "It's patchy at best." He glanced at the others, "Breakfast?"

"Sure," Trowa replied, patting his stomach. "I'm pretty hungry. I'm not sure we ate dinner last night."

"Hmm." Wufei hummed as they walked. Riko and Quatre fell in behind them. He glanced up at Trowa, "Jules seems to think I'm Duo now."

Trowa shrugged, "I don't know what to tell you. Jules is just sensitive."

"Sensitive?" Wufei asked frankly, "Are you using 'sensitive' as a euphemism for 'monumentally stupid' to make yourself feel better?"

"Who's Jules?" Riko asked Quatre quietly.

Quatre's smile was odd. "Trowa's new ex-boyfriend."

"Sure goes through 'em then." Riko jammed her hands into her pockets, uncertain how to take the odd smile on Quatre's face.

"Certainly does." Quatre's smile became more of a grimace. He paused and pulled a phone out of his coat pocket. He showed Riko the screen. "Speak of the devil…" He answered, "Good morning Jules. Yes? No. No. I'm the other one."

Riko glanced at Trowa, and wondered why Quatre had logged Trowa's ex-boyfriend in his contacts as a crying-with-laughter emoji, a broken heart emoji with a small dick gesture emoji.

They got into the lift, and Quatre was smiling broadly at Trowa.

"No, no. You're thinking about Becky. He's the one with the blue eyes."


	12. Don't wanna think anymore

**Disclaimer**: hahahahahahaha… I'm so old. You know the score.

**Notes**: Duo keeps getting distracted. Heero knows what feelings are. Trowa is frustrated.

_**Song**__: Lady Gaga ft. Beyoncé - Telephone_

* * *

_Boy, the way you blowin' up my phone_

_Won't make me leave no faster_

_Put my coat on faster_

_Leave my girls no faster_

_I shoulda left my phone at home_

_'Cause this is a disaster_

_Callin' like a collector_

_Sorry, I cannot answer_

* * *

**Eldritch Holiday**

By Doctor Megalomania

* * *

_Stop callin'_

_Stop callin'_

_I don't wanna think anymore_

_I got my head and my heart on the dancefloor_

* * *

**Chapter 11** – Don't wanna think anymore

* * *

Duo pulled on his watch, glancing at it. The nervousness he felt at checking the time was offset by the excitement he felt. In all honesty, he had been expecting pirates. He'd figured he and Quatre would stay up a few nights, do some digging around, come to the honest-to-god conclusion she'd been kidnapped by pirates, fight the pirates, rescue the professor and come home with a rip-roaring tale of derring-do. He shrugged on his coat and glanced out the window. Their room overlooked the street; there was a billboard blocking the wider view of the town but he could see the crossroad. A gaggle of nuns were walking across the road, some carrying shopping bags. One carried a paper bag, full to the brim. His eyes lingered on the nun with the paper bag. She paused on the other side of the road. Just for a moment. Standing almost like a statue. Duo wanted to slide his eyes off her, but got stuck wondering why she was so still.

She adjusted her bag, and then moved on.

He blinked and was oddly relieved to look away. Heero was behind him, buckling on his holster. His crisp shirt did little to hide his shoulders as they moved. Duo blinked, looking off to the side. He realised how frequently he paid attention to how Heero's muscles moved, it was a rush to realise he was allowed to enjoy it now. He'd always enjoyed the look, but couldn't ever quite bring himself to store the memory. Store it for use later. His eyes slid back to Heero who was shrugging on his own coat. Found himself biting his lower lip, feeling a little warm now. He could save this memory for later, could keep it. Get off to it. Could have Heero there to get off with him. It was tempting now, they could skip breakfast. Get their clothes off.

"Duo?"

Duo dragged his eyes up to meet Heero's dark blue eyes. He swallowed. "Yup."

Heero's lips played with a smirk, "Are you okay?"

"Yup." Duo licked his lips, aware his face was feeling traitorously warm. "Just thinkin' about how strong you are." Glancing away, he stuck his hands into his pockets and rocked on his feet. "Just thinkin' how I'm allowed to enjoy how strong you are." He looked at Heero as the other man moved forward to place his hands on Duo's hips. "Just thinkin' I'm allowed to look at you."

"You've always been allowed to look."

"Not in my head." Duo admitted quietly, "In my head, I had to remind myself that you and Relena were gonna get back together."

Heero didn't say anything, his eyes intense as they roved Duo's face. Duo wasn't sure what it meant, until Heero pushed forward into a hard kiss. His hands tightened on Duo's hips, pulling his body close. Duo wrapped his arms around Heero's neck, allowing himself to wind a hand into the back of the mess of Heero's hair.

They kissed slowly, exploring each other. Duo wondered if he could memorise this moment. Have it saved away. Keep it forever.

Heero's head was warm, his tongue hot. Their lips mashed together, and it was not quite perfect, but he smiled at the thought of enjoying the practice. Heero's hands tightened, fingers digging into his hips, pulling at him. It almost hurt. Duo felt his heart beat harder at the sensation of Heero losing control. Skipping breakfast was okay. More than okay.

There was a knock at the door and they reluctantly separated.

They stared at each other, and Duo thought he could get lost in Heero's dark blue eyes, heavy with want. He licked dry lips, and felt a thrill of excitement as the motion drew Heero's eyes, and he pulled at Duo's hips unknowingly. Heero's eyes flicked up again. Duo wasn't sure what thoughts were going through Heero's mind, but his own eyes flickered shut in anticipation as he saw Heero lean in again.

The knocking at the door was less patient.

Heero took a deep breath, took a step back, took his hands back and clenched them. He swallowed, closed his eyes and visibly brought himself back under control. "Later." He ground out. "We're going to finish this later."

"Uh huh." Duo raised a hand to touch his mouth, he smiled. "Oh yeah, definitely later."

Nodding once hard, Heero went to the door and all but wrenched it open. Wufei was stood there, arms folded. Riko was behind him, standing on tip toes to subtly sneak a peek into their room. Duo grabbed a bag and joined them at the door. "Are we going for breakfast?"

"Anything strange happen to you so far?"

"Uh. Nothing massively out of the ordinary?" Duo shrugged, he caught sight of Trowa and then checked his watch. "Though it has been at least an hour since Jules last contacted either of us. Does that count?"

Trowa held up a middle finger.

* * *

After breakfast, they left the hotel and walked out onto the street. Riko had identified where her aunt had been and they compared it against the information they had from Howard. They'd established that this weird little town had been the last place before Leighton's site that they could reliably place Matsumi, she'd mentioned the train station and the docks. Reluctant to split up just yet, they walked together towards the café where they'd been told by hotel staff that they could get a more reliable internet signal. Once on the street, they paused to get their bearings. Duo stuck his hands in his pocket and looked up at the advertisement billboard. The woman in the picture was turned, her face in profile over the slogan 'Looking for purpose here?'. The advertisement appeared to be for coffee, though what a woman standing in a field of red flowers had to do with coffee was anyone's guess.

Beyond the billboard, the rest of the town seemed fairly average. There was a church down the road, dark and foreboding. Utterly out of keeping with the rest of the town, the massively dark church seemed boarded up and shut down. "Oh yeah," he said to himself, "We're definitely going there. Hey Wufei!" He reached out to tap the man's arm, "Look at that. We're definitely going there."

"No, we're not. It's old and boarded up." Wufei rolled his eyes, "Heero?"

Heero was looking intensely at a map on his phone, flicking a glance up at the church, before saying distractedly, "Church has no strategic or tactical advantage. It's unlikely to be useful."

"Yeah, but man, look at it." Duo gestured it with both hands, "It looks right."

Wufei shook his head and turned his attention to his tablet. "Nope."

"Y'all gonna have to say I was right later." Duo stuck his hands back into his pockets petulantly. His eyes followed a bird that launched itself from the church to fly over the billboard towards the hotel. His eyes glanced off the billboard, leaving him momentarily confused. Only the back of the woman's head was visible, she was staring off into the sunset. He blinked. "Huh."

Someone tapped his elbow, and he turned around. Quatre held up a map. "I think we've got it figured out. The café is this way." He pointed down the street, away from the creepy church.

"Let's go," Heero strode forward, checking the road twice before crossing.

Happiness' town centre was a sweet port place, with wide roads and small independent shops. They passed a number of family owned businesses. Most of the occupants were helpful though stand-offish. They walked pass another church, this one bright and open. Duo paused for a moment, looking through the open double doors. A nun passed, pausing for a moment as she swept the area with a broom. He blinked and carried on walking, jogging slightly to catch up with the others. He glanced over his shoulder one last time, catching sight of the nun out on the steps, sweeping in long hard movements. He shook his head, and bumped into Heero.

"Are you okay?" Heero moved a hand to touch his back, a shade of concern in his voice.

"Just… been a while since I've seen a nun I guess." Duo raised a hand to fiddle with his hat for a moment. "Seems a bit old fashioned."

"Hn." Heero replied, "There are many places on Earth which seem to retain old traditions."

"I know, man." Duo smiled, "Just getting distracted."

He felt an urge to look over his shoulder and was weirdly certain if he looked, the nun would still be there. He resisted the urge. As they walked further, it got stronger. He glanced down and took a hold of Heero's hand.

The urge faded.

Heero glanced at him, an eyebrow vaguely quirked but a small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

* * *

The café was busy, but they could pull together two tables to make enough space for the whole group to sit down. Heero took out his laptop, Riko brought out her small device and Wufei connected his tablet. Trowa got up to buy a round of drinks when all of the pilots' phones began updating with messages from Jules. Riko shifted her seat while he was up to sit next to Wufei. She glanced at his tablet, looking at his notations and his map. Riko pursed her lips. She reached forward and tapped a notation. It expanded with a couple of emails from her aunt to Howard.

"Oh my god, Mike Howard?" She smiled doubtfully, "You know him?"

"He helped me hide during the war," Duo laughed, "Basically my earth dad down here."

She blinked, her expression doubtful. "That old sea dog?"

"Built the Tallgeese." Heero added dourly. "Commanded the Peacemillion. A vital asset during the war."

She swung her head around to look at him, "Nah."

He frowned and looked at her, "He's a masterful mobile suit builder."

"He's a drunk old man on a shitty rusty boat." She raised a hand, disbelievingly, "He wears awful Hawaiian print. Are we talking about the same Howard?"

"Hey!" Duo sat up, mildly offended, "That shitty rusty boat was my home for the first half of the war. That man is a tactical genius!"

"Now, I know you're shitting me. He visited my auntie once and lost his boxers to her neighbour on a bet. They've been stitched into a flag, and it flies above the garden." Riko sat back and folded her arms, "The more I learn about you guys, the less impressed I get." She snorted to herself, muttering sarcastically, "Howard's a tactical genius. Hah!"

Trowa arrived with a tray of drinks, six cups, a jug of milk and a handful of both sugar and sweetener sachets. The pilots all looked at him quizzically, and he tipped his head towards Riko. Riko watched as they all nodded once, reached forward and picked up a cup. They left her the closest one, while each sipping their drinks.

"Do you have any fucking idea how fucking creepy you all are?" Riko pushed herself backwards into her seat. "I mean like, what was that?"

"What was what?" Quatre asked, perplexed. "Why are we creepy?"

"You just all took a drink, but he didn't tell you which one was yours. And what was that whole nodding thing?"

"Ah." Wufei leant forward, as if it was easy to explain their exchange. "He didn't know how you take yours."

"We've been drinking coffee together for almost a decade." Quatre smiled and shrugged, "You kinda learn how everyone takes their drink."

"And the silent conversation?" Riko moved to pick up her drink, ignoring the milk and sweeteners for a single sachet of sugar.

"We were the most wanted terrorists on the planet for a while." Wufei shrugged, "You learn to communicate without speaking."

She paused as she brought her drink to her lips, and looked at him. "That's… really fucking…" She closed her eyes, "Of course you do." She sipped her drink and straightened herself out. "Of course you do."

Heero sat forward, flattening his laptop so all could see his screen. "Shall we get started?"

* * *

Trowa jammed his hands in his pockets to hide how hard he was clenching his fists. Duo and Heero didn't need to know how angry he was. His phone kept buzzing in his back pocket, reminding him of his mistake. With Quatre, Riko and Wufei searching the train station for signs of Professor Matsumi, Trowa, Heero and Duo were going to the docks to ask about for her. As they walked along the road to the docks, Trowa took the time to think. Process, really. Seriously understand how he felt. Quatre had deflected neatly most of the time, but it was hard for him to keep up the facade. Quatre had seemed so... frustratingly happy and normal.

Despite what he'd said, he had completely reverted to the way he used to be without Trowa. Trowa swallowed and watched his feet moving for a moment. Quatre had been happy before they'd fallen in love. Almost carefree. It had been after the war, and their relationship had started to buckle under the strain of being very suddenly adults with responsibilities and families and jobs. Trowa would have rather just given it all up, gotten a new name and start a new life. Quatre had been the one to struggle on in the full force of the new world order.

His phone started buzzing again, reminding him once again of how stupid he'd been.

Quatre had wanted a real connection, wanted Trowa to occasionally actually say the words back. Wanted to be sure that one morning a week they'd make time to have a cup of tea together. Quatre hadn't wanted to be in every aspect of his life, be the reason behind every decision. Quatre had just wanted to be a part of his life.

Trowa could see that now. Years after the fact. He'd felt suffocated then but it was nothing compared to the relationships he'd had afterwards. Where Quatre had simply understood, others had not. Jules refused to understand.

His phone stopped for a few moments.

Jules wanted to be in every thought in every moment and didn't understand that Trowa didn't want that. He raised his eyes and stared at the sky for a moment, regretting once again that Jules' uncanny resemblance to Quatre had been the real reason. Bright blue eyes, golden hair, a charming love of delicate shades of pink. Trowa's shoulders drooped, a chill passing through him. He'd used Jules, set aside his more repugnant characteristics, ignored his friends; all so he could un-focus his eyes and make love to someone who wasn't Quatre. Try to recapture that glorious love he'd walked away from, trying to build a new relationship with someone who just got him.

His phone began buzzing again.

Calling Quatre had been out of the question; his pride wouldn't let him bow and scrape, but he should have. He understood that now. He should have called; then maybe he-

He walked into the back of Duo.

"Whoa!" Duo rocked with the contact, tossing over his shoulder, "You alright?"

"Thinking." Trowa replied, voice low. "Sorry."

Something in his voice must have given him away; Duo turned and tilted his head. "But are you all right?"

"No." Trowa admitted, looking away. "Quatre being here is harder than I'd like to admit."

Duo touched his elbow, glancing at Heero. "We're here for both of you."

Trowa nodded, not quite able to meet their eyes. Knowing he'd see their pity and their compassion. "I know." He admitted, "I just wish..." He paused and sighed, "I wish I could fix it."

"Buddy." Duo said sympathetically, "You will if you want it. But you gotta give him some space, gotta give yourself some space. You gotta tell each other the actual fuckin' truth for once."

"He's angry about Jules."

"Wouldn't you be," Duo shrugged as if it should have been obvious, "If he turned around to reveal he'd basically got himself a Trowa Barton sexdoll?"

Trowa's shoulders slumped and Heero frowned at Duo. Duo blinked. "What?" He shrugged, "It's true." He raised a hand to scratch the back of his head, "I'm not really good with this kinda thing..." He looked around, "I'm gonna go see if someone's seen the professor." He looked at Heero, "Maybe you can do the whole 'feelings' thing better?"

As Duo wandered into the reception area of the nearest port building, Heero shook his head, "You need to talk to Quatre. It will help him to understand your motivations." Heero paused, dark blue eyes flicking down; he pursed his lips for a moment as if not sure what he would say next would be welcome. He finally sighed and looked up again. "He will forgive you."

"Do you have evidence?"

"He blew you up once. He could have killed you. It broke him out of his psychotic episode and he sobbed for days while he thought you were dead. You have broken his heart and it is years later, and yet it still affects him to the point where every day he cannot fulfil his chosen role because his thoughts still linger with you." Heero's dark blue eyes shifted as if he was going to look behind him, but he quickly stopped himself. "I recently found myself in a similar situation, when I realised I couldn't go another day without explaining my feelings. If you both still love each other, then perhaps you can find a way back to each other."

Trowa let himself breathe out slowly. "I didn't think you were getting back together with Relena."

"I'm not." Heero frowned as if confused. "Quatre will forgive you. Just tell him the complete truth." He glanced over his shoulder, "We should catch up with Duo. I'm not comfortable being separated from him."

"This is a weird place." Trowa nodded, "But don't worry. I've been watching him through the window."

"I know. I would still rather not be separated from him." Heero turned away and walked towards the reception area, pulling his phone out to glance at the screen. He answered it promptly, "Yes Quatre? Yes. Yes, they are. No, we haven't—Understood, we'll meet you there."

Trowa followed, forcing himself to unclench his fists and take them out of his pockets.

Feeling his phone buzz again, he pulled it out and braced himself to look at the masses of messages from Jules.

There was only one message from Jules.

One message that stopped him dead.

_**He will never forgive you.**_


	13. Yours, Yours, Yours Anyhow

**Disclaimer**: hahahahahahaha… I'm so old. You know the score.

**Notes**: Quatre makes a new friend. Riko tries out her Gundam skills. Heero sees something he really wishes he hadn't seen.

_**Song**__: Marilyn Manson – I put a spell on you_

* * *

_I put a spell on you because you're mine  
I can't stand the things that you do  
No, no, no I ain't lyin'  
No...I don't care if you don't want me  
'Cause I'm yours, yours, yours anyhow  
I am yours, yours, yours  
I love you...I love you...I love you...  
I love you I love you!_

* * *

**Eldritch Holiday**

By Doctor Megalomania

* * *

_I can't stand the things that you do when you're fooling around  
I don't care if you don't want me  
'Cause I'm yours, yours, yours anyhow_

* * *

**Chapter 12** – Yours, yours, yours anyhow

* * *

Quatre stood on the edge of the train platform, staring at pristine rails. While the others were investigating the docks for any sign of Professor Matsumi's travel plans, he, Wufei and Riko had gone to the train station. The train station was old, open to all and almost unmanned. Signs made it clear that passengers needed to be prepared to pay on the train. Riko and Wufei were talking to the one security guard, and Quatre had wandered away from the booth. Everything around them was so old, and yet the tracks looked almost new. Somewhere down the tracks, he heard a distant bell ring.

"You shouldn't be here."

He blinked and turned, the man behind him was old. Sat on a bench under the platform's roof, the man looked like he'd always been there. He had a sun-bleached coat which looked like it had been navy once upon. Gnarled hands rested atop a cane. Quatre had been sure he'd come out here alone. Sticking his hands into his pockets, he walked over to the old man. Tilting his head, he asked, "Why?"

"Come for a jolly trip. Don't know what you've really walked into. Hah. You won't find the woman." He jerked his head towards the booth; Riko and Wufei were now looking through a travel book. "She took the train weeks ago. Before the storm."

"You know who we're looking for?"

The old man cackled. "Girl's got a head like a dying sunset. Her ma had hair like blue flame. Ain't hard to put two and two together."

"Hmm." Quatre crouched down by the man. "Why shouldn't we be here?"

"Because you'll never leave." The old man leaned closer, smelling of cigars and something older. "This place does something strange to your head."

"Do you know about the time—"

"Time? Time is a flat circle. Nietzsche. We're all eternalised like insects in amber. You cannot escape it." The old man looked over his shoulder contemptuously, towards the booth. "She left. Went to the next town over. Head east, you'll find it." the old man snorted, "Or it will find you."

Quatre frowned at him, unsure what to say.

The old man looked over his shoulder again, lips twisting and doing an ugly thing before he looked back at Quatre. "Time to go, your friends are finished."

Thinking for a moment, Quatre stood, he held out a hand. "I'm Quatre Winner. We're staying at the Mazzem, if you think of anything else..."

The old man stared for a long time at his hand, sucked on a tooth and then nodded, "Yeah, I know. I remember."

Quatre tilted his head, confused.

"Just go." The old man seemed defeated. "You never…" He sucked his teeth again, "Ain't nothing you can do."

Leaving him behind, Quatre moved toward the booth. Wufei glanced over his shoulder as he approached and gestured toward him. The guard was sat at the window, a book limp in his hands. His expression was bored.

"This is my friend, Quatre." Wufei said patiently, "We're staying at the Mazzem. If you think of anything else that might help, perhaps you could come and see us?"

The guard sucked on a tooth with a familiar disdain, looking directly at Quatre. "Uh huh." He said indifferently, "She left town, ain't my place to keep track of where. Not sure how much more I can help you."

Quatre felt his blood run cold when the guard met his eye. "Are you related?" He asked, trying for hopeful but sounding flat even to his own ears. He turned as he pointed towards the bench where the old man-

"Who? Ain't nobody here." The guard sucked his tooth again. By the time Quatre turned back, the guard was reading his book again, something by Nietzsche.

"Time's a flat circle." Quatre replied tonelessly, warm hope quickly replaced by cold dread.

The guard looked up, "Oh, you been reading this too?"

Quatre reached out to touch the guard's hands, "Not yet. I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"We're here for a holiday, I'm sorry we bothered you." Quatre tried to smile, "If you do think of anything, please come and find us."

"Uh huh." The guard awkwardly withdrew his hand from Quatre's reach. "Thanks. Enjoy the rest of your holiday."

Quatre stepped back, glancing back towards the bench where the old man had been and nodded once. He walked away decisively. Only once they were down the steps, back out on the main road again, did he stop to breathe. Riko looked ready to explode with questions but Wufei seemed to know better. He held up a hand and shook his head sharply once. "Not here."

Quatre raised a shaking hand to his head. He took a deep breath and looked Wufei. Wufei looked back at him, concerned but steady. Quatre held on to that, staring until he felt himself calm down, becoming as steady as Wufei's gaze. "She took a train to the next town over. We need to head east."

Wufei tilted his head thoughtfully, "It wasn't clear from the books..."

"No. The guard told me."

Her frustration exploded in his mind and Riko burst out angrily, "When you were holding hands?!"

Quatre turned to her, "No. I don't think he'll tell me for another 40 years."

That seemed to chill her, and she stepped nervously from one foot to another, looking to Wufei then back to him. "Wh-what?"

"Come on. We need to find the others." Quatre touched her shoulder, "Stay close."

Her shoulders rolled up for a moment, and she stared intensely at Wufei. He nodded certainly, and then jumped when she stepped in close and clamped onto his arm. She looked at him, frowning. "I asked with my eyes. You nodded!"

Quatre couldn't help chuckling as Wufei spluttered, "No, you asked if I trusted him."

"I very clearly asked if I could stay close to you," she tightened her grip and reached out to grab Quatre's hand. "I'm not letting go of this." She held his hand up, and shook it hard. "If anyone's gonna protect me, it's you two."

"Woman, let go of me!" Wufei snapped crossly. "You don't need to paw at me like this!"

"Boy, no!" She snapped back. "Don't be stupid!"

Quatre laughed, and sobered quickly when he caught Wufei's expression. "I mean," Quatre said, shrugging. "She's not wrong."

* * *

When they arrived back at the hotel, there was no sign of the others. Trowa and Duo went to the cafe to check, and Heero ran upstairs to get his bag and put his phone on charge. Quatre had said they'd gotten a lead on Matsumi at the train station. He opened his hotel room, and stopped in the doorway.

Duo was stood at the window; it was raining and dark.

Knowing he'd left Duo downstairs, Heero cautiously stepped forward. On the bed, both their bags were in the process of being packed. A sniff, a shuddering breath made Heero look towards the Duo by the window. His arms were loose by his side, one hand gripping a gun. The other hand came up, shaking and bloody. He clapped it over his face roughly, and the shuddering breaths became pained gasps. Heero glanced down; it was Duo's bag which was packed, but his own which was only half-packed. He hadn't packed it, of that he was certain. There was a specific order to his packing, and it looked like someone else had simply stopped in the process of packing his bag. Duo made a pained noise, "Come on, come on." His other hand tightened around the gun as he brought it up to his temple.

"Duo." Heero took a step forward, hand outstretched.

The other man span, strange coloured eyes wide, one blackened. There was a cut on his temple and his lip was split. The gun dropped carelessly out of his hand as he staggered forward. "You made it! I'm sorry... I thought you-" He stopped, stumbling. "Oh... You're not…" Duo turned paler, horror mounting in his face. "Oh no, this is..." he stumbled backward, falling to the ground and scooting backward until his back hit the window. His face crumpled, tears welling and pouring down his face unhindered. "This isn't..."

Heero took a step forward, and that brought a fresh horrified wail from Duo.

"No! Don't touch me! I'm sorry!" Duo almost doubled over with the pain of his emotions, and Heero was powerless to help. "I... I shouldn't have loved you!" Duo screamed hoarsely, "I shouldn't have loved you! I killed you!" He sobbed, "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!"

Heero shook his head, "No. I... I need you. You... you make me so… so happy. I feel so … " He took a tentative step forward, hands held up as if he could catch Duo. "I'm going to tell you... I thought I hadn't found the words yet, but..." Another step forward, "Yes... love. I love you. Please don't-"

Duo's strangely coloured eyes went flat, his body stilling. "Everyone who loves me dies." He looked away, down, to the gun on the floor. He picked it up and held it to his temple. He looked at Heero, sudden strange joy in his eyes, bloodstained teeth in a disgusting grin. "See you soon, lover."

The gunshot was so loud; Heero closed his eyes against the force of it.

"Heero?"

Duo's voice was gentle, almost a whisper. The warm touch on his back brought him back to the room, and he found the courage to open his eyes. Their bags were on the floor by the window, blue sky beyond it. The billboard was only just in view, and the advertisement's model was a woman, smirking as she looked over her shoulder. It unsettled him. He swallowed and took a moment to breath before turning around. Duo was behind him, concern on his face.

"Time skip?" Duo asked quietly. "Otherworldly vision?"

"You." Heero tried to speak, his throat tight. Took another breath. "You were here."

"Okay."

"I was dead."

"Here?"

"No. You." Heero took another breath, looked away from Duo. "You thought you'd killed me. And then." Heero felt a tear roll down, followed by another. "You killed yourself."

He heard Duo take a sharp breath. He made himself swallow and look back. Duo looked pale; he took a step closer to Heero and reached down to link fingers with him. Heero looked down at their hands together, and took strength from it. "Promise me."

Duo's silence made Heero look up. Duo's strangely-coloured eyes were sad.

"I can't."

"Promise me anyway."

Duo shook his head and looked away, "You promise me first."

"I—" Heero paused, suddenly understanding, and nodded, "All right. I can't either. But... I would never want you to kill yourself for me. I would want you to live. That's my promise to you."

"Promise me you'll haunt me."

"I promise."

Duo nodded, "Okay. I'll haunt you too. Like you'll wanna get an exorcism in the end."

It warmed him to hear that. "Never." Heero looked over Duo's face, eyes resting on the small, fragile smile Duo had. For a moment, he saw bloody teeth, and he snapped his eyes up to meet Duo's.

"What?"

Heero stepped forward and embraced Duo, buried his nose into Duo's neck, one hand weaved fingers possessively into Duo's braid, the other grabbing Duo's back to pull him close. It soothed him. Duo's scent was a heady mix of deodorant and somehow the same smell that Deathscythe used to have, minty almost. He took three long breaths before pulling back enough to meet Duo's eye. "I know how I feel."

Stiffening, Duo nodded slowly and, for a moment, Heero saw the same horror briefly flash through Duo's eyes. "Let's save that for the ride home, huh?"

"You're not going to kill me."

It was a tense moment before Duo answered, low and bitter. "I'm not afraid I'm going to kill you. I'm afraid of getting you killed. I have a perfect track record of everyone who's ever ..." He swallowed, afraid to even say the word. "Loved me... They're dead. I can't…" He swallowed hard, "I can't lose you too. We just found each other."

Heero stared at him for a long time, trying to think of what to say. He realised he just needed to listen to his emotions. Nodding once, hard, he said, "Mission accepted." He took a step forward and kissed Duo.

Duo resisted for a moment, before melting and returning the kiss hard. Heero felt Duo's arms twist around his neck, dropped his hands to Duo's hips and pulled. Pulled even harder when he felt Duo's body respond, felt Duo's hands in his hair. Pushed back with a snarl when pulling Duo's hips didn't get them closer. Broke away and took a step back when he realised he couldn't control his need.

Duo stared at him, mouth open, tongue darting out to lick bruising lips. It made Heero clench his fists, and drop his head. Felt Duo's fingers slip under his chin, forcing his head back up. Heero shook his head, "I'm sorr—"

"It's later, solider." Duo's eyes were sharp as he moved forward to give Heero a hard kiss.

Heero ran his hands down Duo's hips, down his legs and lifted.

"Oh shit." Duo whispered in awe as Heero picked him up. "Yes."

Heero smiled as Duo's back arched, pressing his crotch against Heero's stomach. It almost unbalanced them, and Heero took steps toward the bed, eyes fixed on Duo's. He lowered Duo gently, moving to kneel on the bed over him. Moving to lie on him, between Duo's spread legs. Rolled his hips to make Duo aware of his own cock, hard and throbbing, trapped in his clothing. Duo's strange coloured eyes were dilated and he was grinning. It made Heero run his hand all the way down Duo's face, neck, arm, side, hip. Clench on his thigh and pull Duo's leg in close as he lean forward to kiss him.

He took a shuddering breath as he felt Duo's clever fingers begin working at his holster. It brought him back enough to push himself up onto his hands and look down. He panted quietly, looking down at Duo. Duo's clever fingers dropped away from his holster, releasing him from it, and his strangely-coloured eyes were dark. Heero was about to drop down again, when Duo's phone started ringing loudly and insistently.

Heero pushed himself up and onto his knees; Duo remained on his back, pushing himself up on his elbows to glare at Heero. Heero stared down at where their bodies remained in contact. Duo's shirt pulled up to reveal a taut stomach, Duo's legs spread, Heero's crotch pressed up against Duo's backside. Heero ran his hands down Duo's inner thighs slowly. Duo tilted his hips up.

Duo's phone stopped, and then Heero's phone began ringing.

"That's Quatre's ringtone." Heero said distractedly, eyes somehow locked on the outline of Duo's cock in his trousers, his hands pulling the material tighter. "We should answer."

"Uh huh." Duo sounded as if he couldn't care less. He pressed up, canting his hips up against Heero's hands. "I'd much rather you helped me with this."

Heero couldn't help the greedy smile on his lips, dragged his thumb hard along the underside of Duo's cock over the trouser material. Flicked his eyes up quickly enough to catch Duo's eyes roll back, fluttering shut.

A loud rapping at the door, a specific set of knocks, made them both still.

Heero rocked back off the bed, and padded toward the door. Duo sat up, scooting his backside to the edge of the bed so he could sit hunched.

Heero opened the door, taking care to position himself behind it.

Quatre was stood there, looking concerned. "Hi, you didn't answer your phones."

"No." Heero replied. "We did not."

"Wh..." Quatre blinked, glanced at Duo, "Oh."

"Hi Quatre," Duo said, annoyance dancing lightly in his forced cheer, "What did you want, buddy?"

"Oh." Quatre blinked again, a blush creeping up his neck. He looked at Heero hopefully, and then nodded. "Sorry. Um, we just got back from the train station. We have a lead."

"I know." Heero frowned, and tilted his head in confusion. "You called me and told me."

"Yes, Trowa said the same. Here's the thing..." Quatre held up his phone, and tapped twice. His call log was now visible to Heero. "I haven't called you before just now."

Heero frowned, and pulled his own phone out of his pocket. Tapping it to bring up the call log, he showed Quatre the call from earlier. A bloodstained grin flashed in his mind, and he glanced at Duo. He could see the same thought occurring to him. He looked at Quatre; "Maybe you haven't called me yet."


	14. You know I can't fly

**Disclaimer**: hahahahahahaha… I'm so old. You know the score.

**Notes**: Duo gets distracted. Riko asks one too many questions.

_**Song**__: Toploader – Achilles Heel_

_But there's a child in our eyes __  
__And the child never dies __  
__So keep the dream alive __  
__When the air I suck inside __  
__I can push with all my might __  
__And the statue in the sky __  
__With my Achilles heel_

**Eldritch Holiday**

By Dr Megalomania

_Goodbye to the sky __  
__You know I can't fly but I feel love __  
__Do you know how I feel _

**Chapter 13** – You know I can't fly

Heero and Duo stepped out of the lift. Duo waved at Quatre, "See you in the car park in 30 minutes."

Quatre nodded, small smile on his lips. "No rush." The lift doors closed.

Duo chewed on his lip for a moment, before quietly admitting to Heero. "Quatre totally knows."

"Yes." Heero didn't seem at all surprised. "He's perceptive and we have not been careful enough."

"Ugh," Duo rocked back on his heels and turned toward their hotel room. "Man."

"Quatre can be trusted not to make a scene." Heero followed him, reaching out to touch Duo's elbow. "He has known about my affection for you for a long time. I think perhaps even before I totally understood myself."

"Really?" Duo paused to look at him, "Huh. He didn't tell me! He normally tells me everything!"

Heero simply smiled and moved his hand to trail across Duo's back, cupping his side. He pulled and dropped a kiss on Duo's cheek. "I'm glad." He nodded and opened the door to their shared room. They both paused for a moment to look inside. Nothing was out of place. They shared a brief amused look at each other, and then set about packing.

With the information from the train station, they decided to follow Matsumi east. Maps were not entirely clear what lay to the east, but Quatre seemed quite certain that even if they didn't find the town, it would find them. Heero began packing his back, taking care to roll as many items as he could. He glanced over to the other side of the bed, Duo was sat folding items carefully. Heero turned his attention to his weapons bag. Within a few minutes he was finished, and stood to check on his electronic items. He'd leave them charging for as long as he could.

Looking over to check on Duo, he saw Duo stood at the window, staring down at the street with a slack expression. Lost in thought probably. He moved over towards Duo, catching sight of the billboard outside. The smirking woman looked different, more angry than amused. He reached Duo's side and was surprise when Duo didn't react. He looked at Duo properly, hands were stiff, clenching on the cloth he held. What Heero had taken for slack inattention, he saw now it was glassy. Duo didn't even blink when Heero waved a hand in front of his strange-coloured eyes, they didn't even react, the pupils contracted into small pinpricks. Heero frowned and looked outside; the billboard looked less angry now, more indifferent. But it wasn't that.

There was a nun standing on the street.

The bag she held was full with groceries, a bag of bright red apples at the top.

She wasn't moving.

Heero glanced back at Duo; his hands almost shook from being clenched so tightly. Duo's expression was fixed, almost as if he wasn't breathing. It wasn't fear, it wasn't anything. Just fixed.

Heero reached out and touched Duo's hands.

The tight tension on Duo's body, his face, his eyes melted instantly and Duo took a deep gulping breath as if he was breaking through the surface of water. Animation came back to him; he blinked and resumed folding the shirt he held. As if noticing for the first time Heero was touching him, he looked at Heero quizzically. "Everything ok?"

"You were ..." Heero frowned, getting deeply concerned, and looked down at the street. The nun was walking away. He glanced at the billboard, and the smirking woman looked more amused now. He looked at Duo and led him away from the window, "You were still. You looked like you were stuck watching the nun."

"The..." Duo blinked, looked at the window and a moment, looked like he needed to go back to the window. Heero put his hand on Duo's shoulder and squeezed. "The nun," Duo continued, casually, "I keep seeing her. It's been a long time since—"

"It's more than that." Heero shook his head, looking towards the window. The billboard's woman was now facing away. "The woman in the advert keeps moving."

Duo jerked in surprise, "You think so too?" He reached up to scratch his head, "I thought I was seeing things. I think the message keeps changing too."

"Yes." Heero agreed, "Let's finish this up." He picked up a pair of Duo's trousers. "I'll help you."

"So, like... Why do you guys really do this?" Riko was packing her rucksack, and she'd been asking him an assortment of questions. Having moved on from his job in the Preventers, she now seemed curious about why they were chasing after a woman they didn't even know. Having already explained the whole situation once, Wufei was confused until she added, "I mean, who goes out rescuing people for laughs? Who goes saving the entire earth sphere in five admittedly cool mobile suits?"

Wufei glanced up from where he was kneeling, he thought about her comment for a moment before shaking his head. "We all have our own reasons, but we all act out of a desire to do good for humanity." He zipped his bag closed and secured the tabs in a lock. "We have each seen the worst of it in different ways, so if what we can do can make the world better, we will."

"At what cost?" Riko asked, her voice was vaguely distracted, stuffing her pyjamas into her rucksack. "I mean, I saw a documentary last year—"

"Not the one where Quatre's played by a woman?" Wufei snorted at the memory.

"Yeah! That one! I thought it was well done!" Riko picked up her bag and moved to put it by the door. "I mean, you seem to have lost more than the others and yet... you're like, the most stable. When I read about your final battle with General Trieze in space, I thought, there's a man who should be broken in half." She came back to pick up his rucksack, as he moved his holdall to the door. "I mean, like no offence, but how did you not want to just… I dunno… just jack it all in?"

"I did try to once after peace was declared but…" Wufei shrugged, folding his arms, thinking for a long moment. "Relena promised she'd do everything to make this world better."

Riko stopped, eyes wide like.

He tilted his head; she looked like she hadn't expected him to answer. He frowned, glancing down before looking up. "I was going to self-destruct. The Peacemillion noticed my suit overloading. She was on comms."

Riko's expression did not change; if anything she was starting to look more horrified. It confused Wufei more.

"She promised me she'd make it better; she'd make it worth it all." He offered, trying to explain why he had changed his mind. "With Sandrock trying to cut into Nataku to disable to self-destruct module, and Heavyarms trying to drag Sandrock away out of the blast radius, I realised that I should give her a chance." Wufei thought about what he'd said; none of it seemed to warrant her mounting horror or increasingly pale complexion.

"Woman, what is wrong with you?"

That seemed to move her, and Riko turned away. She moved toward the bed and sat down heavily, as if her legs couldn't support her. "Don't you..." She dropped her head, and took a deep breath.

Wufei recognised the signs of fainting, and moved to crouch in front of her. "Do you want to sit on the floor instead?"

She looked at him, suddenly and then nodded. He helped her to shuffle to the floor and then got her to turn around. "Put your feet up on the bed." He helped her to lie back, and then joined her, resting his feet up on the bed as well. He clasped his hands over his stomach. "What did I say?"

"You sounded..." She seemed uncertain what to say, "You sounded like it was obvious you should have committed suicide at the end of the war. You made it sound like... suicide was a normal thought. And then I realised ..." She paused for a long time, and then reached out with a hand to touch his thigh. He looked down, and saw her lime green nails. He moved his own hand to rest it on hers. Her fingers were a lot warmer than his.

"I realised that you must have always been prepared to die. Choosing suicide must have been a relief at the end of it all. And then I realised you don't know how fucking not normal that is." He turned his head to look at her, her other hand was covering her eyes, and her sunset hair was fanned out around her head. He was alarmed to notice tears rolling down under her hand. "You don't know..." She swallowed hard, "You don't know it's not-normal to live like you should always be prepared to die. You don't know it's not fair!"

He shifted so he could roll up onto an elbow. Looking down at her, he gently moved a hand to rest it on the one she had covering her face. She let him move it, and her dark eyes were filled with tears.

He tilted his head, chewing on a lip before saying softly. "Someone had to do it."

"Why did it have to be you?" She snarled, more tears spilling from her eyes. "Who looks at a kid like you and says, yup, let's throw this kid at the full might of the earth's armies." She shook her head, "I mean, shit man. That's not fair. It's not fucking fair!"

"That's not exactly how it happened."

"Oh please, like the tiny details matter!" She shoved her hand into her face, and angrily wiped away the tears. It amused him.

"It's all right." He said, trying to calm her, "It was a long time ago."

"It doesn't make it right!" Riko smacked her hand down by her side, her other hand bunching on his clothes. "Nobody should look at a little kid like that!"

He gently raised a hand and shifted a lock of sunset orange hair away from her eyes. He smiled. "Thank you."

She pursed her lips like she wanted to say more, and then blew out a breath in a huff.

"Take a deep breath." He said quietly, waiting for her to respond before saying, "And now let it go."

Her dark eyes closed for a moment while she took another breath. She nodded, coming to some internal decision. She opened her eyes, and looked at him seriously. "In case nobody said it, thank you for your sacrifice. I'm sorry it happened."

His smile was lopsided, but he nodded once. For a moment, he wanted to touch her forehead again, almost moving his fingers to do so. For a moment, he saw red flowers in his memory. He sat up in a fluid motion and held out a hand. "Ready to get up?"

Quatre nodded his thanks to Trowa, who held the door open for him. They'd packed up silently and quickly, stepping out into the broad sunshine to start packing up the van. Trowa left Quatre to pack up the back, while he went to perform pre-drive checks on the vehicle. Despite the sunshine, Quatre felt a finger of cold air over his neck. He paused in his packing and looked around. Across the street, a statue stood. It couldn't be a person; the features were too broadly made. It stood, human sized and clothed in finely made stone. He narrowed his eyes as he looked at it. He hadn't noticed it before. Shaking his head, he returned his attention to the back of their vehicle. To make room for Riko, they'd have to bring up the seats in the back and rearrange their bags. He brought up two seats. It would allow them to spread themselves out, while giving them a place to put rucksacks. An odd thought occurred to him; something made him want to check if the statue was still there. He dismissed the thought, and carried on working. The feeling passed.

"I think we should ..." Trowa said as he walked around toward the back, he paused and looked inside. Nodded with a small smile, "I was going to suggest that we bring up two seats, but I see you beat me to it."

"Not just a pretty face." Quatre said, folding his arms.

Trowa chuckled fondly, "You were never just a pretty face." He opened his mouth to say something else, but his phone started ringing. Setting his shoulders, he glanced at the screen. "Jules."

Quatre looked mildly amused, "You should probably get that. He might leave you alone for a couple of hours."

Heaving a sigh, Trowa answered the phone and stepped away from the vehicle. Quatre shook his head patiently, and glanced up at the billboard across the street. He frowned when he realised it wasn't the same one he'd thought he'd seen earlier. The woman in the advert was turned, facing out. Her arms were folded tightly, perfect make up spoiled by the ugly anger she had in her face. The message next to her was odd as well. 'You cannot do this.'

He tilted his head, looking at the product advertised next to it. "That's a strange way of advertising coffee." He shook his head, and looked over to the hotel entrance. Duo and Heero walked out, closely followed by Riko and Wufei. Riko was holding Wufei's rucksack. Quatre raised an eyebrow at that. Wufei did not normally let others touch his things, and yet he was curiously unconcerned by Riko.

Quatre looked back at Riko, opening his heart to her. He caught a mix of concern, sadness and warmth.

"I'm not coming back. We can't keep having the same conversation!" Trowa walked back past the vehicle. "Nothing you do or say will change my mind."

Quatre was startled by Trowa's bright flare of anger. He quickly closed his eyes and took a breath.

Concern. Trowa's concern for him.

"I'm done." Trowa said, standing closer to him.

Concern and warmth. Quatre opened his eyes.

Trowa was stood, hanging up his phone, before him.

Sadness and deep regret.

They stared at each other.

Quatre closed his heart, and looked away from Trowa. The statue was definitely closer now. He began walking towards it, needing to get away from the others for a moment.

"Are you okay?" Trowa was closer still, eyes wide. "You look pale."

Quatre nodded, dragging his eyes from the statue. "Yes. I..." He shook his head, "I peeked and got swept into some deep emotions." He pursed his lips, "Maybe you could just..."

"Me?" Trowa blinked, realisation setting in. His first thought must have been to move in to embrace Quatre as he moved to take a step forward, but then his swift second thought was to step back, dropping his arms to hang by his side. "Sorry, Jules is... Not exactly taking this well."

"No. He loves you."

"He doesn't love me. He doesn't respect me." Trowa frowned, "Love and respect would mean he'd—"

"Cut off all contact and carefully disappear from your life." Quatre said pointedly. "Yes, but some people deal with rejection differently."

"… I wasn't going to say—"

"Let's just not do this." Quatre stepped back. He glanced toward the billboard and was shocked that the woman's cold fury seemed to be smug amusement. It was still ugly. 'You cannot do this' seemed to be a little bigger. He frowned. He looked down and then at Trowa directly, regretting his tone. He reached out and touched Trowa gently. "You must mean a lot to him. Even though he's not taking care of yours, please take care of his feelings."

Trowa raised a hand to tentatively cup Quatre's, holding it close. "I'm more worried about what it's doing to you. I ..." He looked down at their hands, and held Quatre's hand closer still. "I don't want it to affect you."

Quatre smiled at his concern. "I know. So, show the same consideration to Jules."

"Why are you..." Trowa pursed his lips, stopping the thought. "You're a better person than me."

That made Quatre laugh, he nodded and took back his hand. "I just know what it feels like." He took a moment and looked at Trowa kindly, "To want something so… precious back so much." He looked past Trowa, swallowing hard.

Quatre took a breath and then nodded, a smile pasted onto his face.

"We should help the others get ready."

Trowa looked like he wanted to say something but he nodded silently instead.

As Riko and Wufei got into the back seats and pulled the doors shut, Heero came around the side of the vehicle, looking concerned. Every so often he'd look for Duo, as if checking he was there. Duo was bent over the front seat, fiddling with the satnav. Quatre tilted his head quizzically, when he caught Heero checking again. "What's wrong?"

"Duo keeps seeing something, and it holds his attention. I don't like it."

Quatre took his serious tone, and nodded. "Understandable." He glanced around, "I feel the same about the billboard."

"We've noticed it too." Heero looked up at the billboard. The woman stood with her arms crossed, her expression was a quiet fury again. "I suspect more is going on than we anticipated." Heero frowned, "This is certainly not being caused by pirates."

"Hmm." Quatre nodded with him.

"You should call me."

"What?"

Heero looked at him, and brought up his phone. Quatre's out of time phone call was still listed. "You need to make this phone call happen."

"Do you seriously..." Quatre paused, worrying his lip for a moment. "Yes. I suppose so." He brought out his phone and got into the vehicle. Heero got in beside him, and watched intently. Quatre tapped Heero's contact card, and watched the screen as it began ringing. He glanced over to Heero, who had his own phone out and ready. Nothing happened.

Quatre closed his eyes briefly, as the call connected to Heero. He held it up to his ear.

_"Yes Quatre?"_ Heero's voice was clear even though the man next to him didn't say anything.

Quatre opened his eyes, and held Heero's steady blue eyes. "Are you at the docks?"

_"Yes"_

Quatre glanced around; Duo was in the front seat. Trowa was getting into the driver seat. "Are Trowa and Duo still with you?"

_"Yes, they are."_

Quatre looked at Heero again who nodded back at him, "Have you finished at the docks?"

_"No, we haven't-" _

A wave of nausea hit him then; it was hard to continue. Quatre raised a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose. "We got a lead. At the train station. Meet us back at the hotel now."

_"Understood. We'll meet you there."_

Quatre hung up then, and pressed the back of his hand against his mouth. He felt moisture on his hand, and pulled it away to look. His nose was bleeding. He could taste metal in his mouth and took the tissue that Heero offered him. Heero's expression was grim. Beyond Heero, Quatre could see the street darkening. The rain started and moved closer, falling hard and angry from the darkening skies. Duo twisted in the seat to look back at them, "Well." He nodded understandingly, "That sounded like it hurt. Probably means we can't just call ourselves and tell ourselves to fuck off home."

Quatre let his head clear before he spoke again, dabbing gently at his nose. "It would seem speaking to the past is not something we are going to be able to do often." He glanced at Duo, "Still having fun?"

Duo didn't answer; his strange coloured eyes seemed stuck at a point just beyond him. Quatre felt the urge to look behind him, knowing that the statue would be closer. "Duo." He said, "Duo, don't."

Heero frowned and reached forward to touch Duo's shoulder, his hand gripping him. He gave Duo a small shake, "Let it go now."

Duo blinked slowly. "What?"

"Stop looking at it." Quatre leaned forward, moving into Duo's field of vision. "Whatever it is, it does not mean well."

Riko watched as both Trowa and Wufei turned to look out, hands going to weapons. She looked out the window and didn't see anything that warranted the reaction. "There's nothing there."

"There isn't now." Quatre said with certainty. "The statue has gone."

"There wasn't one to begin with," Riko replied, sounding anxious.

Duo shook his head, "She's right... only the..." He frowned, raising a hand to his own head, rubbing as if it hurt. "There's a nun. I keep seeing her."

"Ugh." Wufei made a noise of disgust, "Brain Jars, Duo. This will be some stupid mental shit."

It made Duo snort, "Maybe." He nodded, coming back to himself. "Looks like we got spookiness, we got time skips, all we need now is actual aliens!"

Riko glanced at Wufei, "What—"

He rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Stupid quasi-occult shit."

There was a loud crack, plunging the car into darkness for a split second. Lightning arched and was followed by a loud clap of thunder. Quatre felt the urge to go to the statue stronger then and lurched forward to grab at Duo. Opening his door, Duo had one foot dangling out of the car, turning his body mindlessly to exit the vehicle. Heero saw that, and moved to swing both arms around Duo's neck, dragging him back into the car and pinning him to the seat. Trowa leaned forward and grabbed Duo's seat belt, pulling it hard across to him. In the lightning that followed, Duo's strange-coloured eyes were wide and his pupils were pinpricks. Quatre felt the urge again, and this time couldn't stop himself from looking behind. Out of the window, below the billboard, the statue stood facing them.

Another loud clap of thunder, and Quatre felt his body move despite himself. He briefly opened the door, before Wufei wrestled him back from the seat behind him. He heard Riko scream, "Start the car!"

Darkness flashed. Lightning lit up the place. The billboard groaned.

The statue was closer.

"Riko!" Wufei grunted as he struggled with Quatre, "The door!"

Riko lunged forward; pulling shut the door Quatre was opening. The car lurched forward. Riko stared wide-eyed as Trowa drove the car in a neat circle while also wrapping an arm with Duo's seat belt and pulling. Outside the rain fell as if it hated the ground. Heero was silent, grunting every so often trying to keep Duo in the car. They swerved out of the hotel's car park, and out onto the road. Quatre felt himself come back, feeling in control of his body. He grabbed at Wufei's hands, "I'm okay!"

Duo stopped struggling and slammed his own door shut. "What the fuck—"

Behind them, there was another crack.

The sound of metal bending against its will.

Riko stared open mouthed as the billboard came crushing down on the road, cables and lights snapping in the rain. For a moment, she saw the words _'The Distant Star Must Not Rise'_ as the billboard crumbled to the ground. The car swerved, and she looked forward to see Duo helping Trowa to untangle himself. Looking back out of the rear window, Riko swallowed hard and reached out to grab Wufei's arm as he sat back.

There was a twisted thing in the road behind them.

Unmoving yet closer.

Human-shaped but bent at the wrong angles.

She felt his hands on her face, pulling her away. She looked at him, and felt herself breath again. She held on to the strength she could see deep in Wufei's dark eyes. She nodded hard, understanding what he was saying without words. Wufei opened his arms and held her as she pressed her face against his chest.

"I'll keep you safe." He said quietly, his cold hand in her hair, "Just breathe now."


	15. In red, underlined

**Disclaimer**: hahahahahahaha… I'm so old. You know the score.

**Notes**: Riko doesn't think she'll ever get used to the Gundams. Duo disagrees.

_**Song**__: Taylor Swift – Look at what you made me do_

* * *

_I don't like your little games  
Don't like your tilted stage  
The role you made me play  
Of the fool, no, I don't like you  
I don't like your perfect crime  
How you laugh when you lie  
You said the gun was mine  
Isn't cool, no, I don't like you (oh!)_

* * *

**Eldritch Holiday**

By Doctor Megalomania

* * *

_But I got smarter, I got harder in the nick of time  
Honey, I rose up from the dead, I do it all the time  
I've got a list of names and yours is in red, underlined_

* * *

**Chapter 14** – In red, underlined

* * *

Riko looked over her shoulder at the pilots sleeping behind her. Trowa and Duo were asleep, creepily, upright, arms folded. They looked like they had simply closed their eyes. Beyond them, in the back row of seats, Quatre and Heero seem to be discussing their 'mission' in depth, planning out their next steps. She shifted, looking at Wufei's profile. His face was stern, glasses pushed up his face. He was focused on the dark road ahead of them. They'd been driving for hours.

The storm had not let up.

They had stopped twice to swap drivers and shotgun twice. Heero had explained to her that 'shotgun' was normally an armed position in their normal configuration. He said this like it was obvious, and then went on to explain when she clearly looked like she didn't understand. They would have the shorter shift while Trowa and Duo slept since she couldn't handle a gun. Wufei had rolled his eyes when Duo had made clear that they had regular partners and that Wufei was most used to having different people, so it would be a good idea to partner her with Wufei. Riko had thought it sounded like he was making an excuse for them to palm her off on Wufei. It hadn't made sense until Duo had indelicately crowbarred into the conversation the fact that Sally – Wufei's normal partner in the preventers – wasn't his girlfriend. Riko smiled at the memory of how mortified Wufei had looked… how Heero had closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose.

Riko looked at the man's face, fine lines creased where he frowned a lot despite his youth. His fine black hair, meticulously braided back in a tight pony tail, made her think briefly of space in its total darkness. When she caught the slight movement of his dark eyes slipping off the road towards her, she sat back properly and slouched slightly. She looked down at her hands, two nails were ripped - chipping the lime green paint - when she'd struggled with Winner's door. She linked her fingers, hiding her nails from view. Thinking about the door made her mind wander back to the thing in the road.

"Are you tired?"

Wufei's voice was quiet, like he didn't want to risk waking her if she'd fallen asleep. It bemused her, and she first shook her head, and then cleared her throat.

"Um, no. Just." She tightened her hands, "Not sure what to think about all of this."

"It's not pirates." Wufei said in a tone that made her think he was confessing a sin. She glanced at him and one side of his mouth was jerked up in a mirthless smile. "We thought it was going to be pirates." He said, as if it was obvious. A frown flittered over his brow. "I hope your aunt is okay."

"I hope so too." Riko replied, she looked at Wufei's profile. "I hope she didn't meet the thing in the road."

"Or the billboard." Wufei stared ahead. She watched a thought cause another brief ripple in his brow, dark eyes narrowing. She heard the quiet crunch of his hands tightening on the leather wheel. He took a breath in, a breath out. She looked out, forward over the road ahead. The headlights did little more than illuminate the road just in front of the car. Everything else was pitch-black, not even the sickly moon did anything to clear up the murky landscape.

"I meant it earlier. I will keep you safe." Wufei said, in a quiet determined tone. "I promise. I won't let the thing get you."

She looked at him, feeling sad for a moment. "You can't promise that." She said, she stared at his tight hands, his knuckles almost white. "You can't promise to keep me safe. You might fail." She looked at him again, "And I might become a reason for Relena to fail."

His eyes widened, and he took a sharp breath.

She smiled bravely, "Instead promise to try. That's all you can do. That's all any of us can do."

"I'm stronger than you think."

"I'm not." Riko sat back and folded her arms, "And I think it's alright to recognise when it's okay to be weak. This… this is something way bigger than me. It's far, far bigger than you. No matter how awesomely strong you are, you're still just a human without your Gundam-"

She blinked when he suddenly groaned.

Glancing over, she saw Wufei now ground his teeth, his lips pulled back into a silent snarl.

"What? What did I say?"

"Not you. Maxwell." Wufei said the name like it was a curse. He risked a glance at her, "Cosmic Horror."

"What?"

"It's a cosmic horror."

"What the hell?"

"Fucking Maxwell."

There was a sleepy noise from behind them, and Riko turned to see Duo drag himself forward, opening one eye and then the other. He finally opened both eyes, apparently having woken himself up. "Wha' do ya wan'?"

"It's a cosmic horror." Wufei ground out. "You fucking bastard."

"Huh?"

"Cosmic. Fucking. Horror."

Full awareness seemed to snap back into Duo, and his strange coloured eyes lit up. "Oh. OH!" He grinned manically at Riko, "Can I get a righteous HELL YEAH?"

"No," Riko shrank back afraid of his sudden manic glee, "What the fuck is a cosmic horror?"

"It's a situation where something much larger than humanity crushes the protagonists under foot uncaringly while it continues on its way." Heero called from the back, "Though I would argue this is definitely more of a closed circle."

Duo twisted in his seat, "Nah. We left Happiness; we're on our way to a new place. Can't be a closed circle. Cosmic Horror!" He tapped excitedly on the back of Wufei's head rest. "Come on, buddy. Time to say it!"

"Nope."

"One hundred percent, I was right. I'm calling it now! Time to say it!" He threw his hands up to give praise, "Oh lord, can I get a Hell Yeah!?"

Given how tall he was in such a small space, Riko was actually very impressed as a sleepy Trowa Barton shifted to raise a long leg and kick Duo hard. A dark green eye opened sleepily, "We're next shift. Go back to sleep."

"Alright, it's all right." Duo patted the foot currently kicking his thigh. "I'm going, I'm going." He tapped Wufei's head rest twice. "In the morning, buddy. There's plenty of time for you to practice."

Wufei snarled and raised a hand off the steering wheel to raise his middle finger at Duo. "Like hell I'm—"

There was a loud noise, like the thunder was in the car.

Riko was flung forward, her head bouncing off the front console. She saw a bright light that didn't fade, and for a long time she held her hands to her head. When she eventually realised that the light she was seeing wasn't from inside her, she raised her sore head. The light was pouring in from outside the car. She looked at Wufei, her eyes adjusting to the light. He was sprawled over the wheel, glasses askew. His dark eyes opened, and he seemed to take a moment to assess his body before sitting up right. He looked as confused as she felt.

Riko looked around, they were parked. Outside was still too bright for her eyes, but she could see a bush in front of them and a sign.

Behind her, she heard a groan. Quatre called out, "Pilots."

"I'm ok." Heero replied.

Duo pushed himself up to say, "I think I'm ok, maybe my dinner doesn't agree."

"Yeah." Trowa groaned behind her, "Might have hit my head."

Riko glanced at Wufei as he answered, "Me too."

"Uh. I'm ok. Me too. I think?" Riko called out. She was relieved to see Wufei smile slightly. He reached out to touch her forehead, mildly concerned by whatever he saw. He shifted a lock of her hair, and nodded.

"You'll have a bruise, any dizziness? Nausea?"

She shook her head, "No, just…" She gestured out the window, "Confused like… didn't we just leave here?"

Duo gave a loud groan, "Oh no."

As they got out of the vehicle, they looked around. The hotel they were parked in front of was on the other side of the road, and looked significantly more rundown than before. The sign above the door read 'MEZZAM'. Wufei stretched uncomfortably, looking around the car park. He saw the twisted thing first. It stood, too long and part bent at just the wrong angles. It looked like a woman but wasn't.

It stood with a bag of groceries, and even though he couldn't quite see its face, he knew it was grinning. He looked beyond her, on the other side of the road there was a billboard. Like everything else, it was flipped over. This time the woman stood to the right of the billboard, her arms folded and her head tilted.

'_Welcome home' _

"Well." Duo said, as he came up next to Wufei, "Shit."

Trowa breathed out slowly, while Quatre shook his head.

Riko raised a hand to her head and glanced at Wufei uncertainly. "What now?"

"Now?" Wufei nodded slowly, his expression vaguely amused. "Now Duo's gotta admit it."

Duo puffed up his cheeks only to blow it all out in a huff. He shook his head, "Well, fuck… You were right, Heero Yuy."

Heero nodded, his expression dour. "A little louder."

"Man…"

There was a rumble.

They all looked up to watch as the sky turned dark, and the storm they'd outrun caught up with them.

* * *

The Mezzam hotel was the same hotel they'd left but everything was laid out in the opposite. They'd grabbed their bags, and ran into the hotel. It wasn't exactly the same, Wufei realised as they booked their rooms. Everything was old, unkempt and dirty. Glass everywhere was cracked, fine cracks spread like spider webs. The hotel staff looked like they hadn't slept, confused when the pilots tried to explain what had happened. Their rooms were dusty, wall paper peeling, paint flaked from cracked walls. Wufei stood at the window, looking out across a garden which was over grown and suffering in the storm. Dry land unused to rain shifted, plants that were dried out and dead simply buckled under the hard rain. He'd open the window to try and get rid of the vague smell of burning, only to realise it was coming from the outside. Shaking his head, he glanced at Riko. She was sat on the bed, one knee clutched against her chest. She rested her chin on her knee, and was staring at their bags.

His phone buzzed, he glanced at the screen and rolled his eyes when he realised that they seemed to only have connection when Jules wanted to phone them. Hanging up on Jules helped him to make his mind up. He walked up to Riko, and tapped her shoulder when she didn't look up. "Come on. We should get some food."

She stared at him for a long moment, fear deep in her dark eyes. "How can you… we might be—"

"We might be trapped in a town that may or may not be real." Wufei nodded, "Yes. It is literally the worst thing. But I am hungry, and you must be as well." He crouched down in front of her, "We must remain strong for now. You can fall apart later when we're out of here."

"Is this what you do?" She asked him, motioning with her hands. "Just pack your emotions off to one side and then deal with it later."

"There's only so much that screaming at the horizon will do." Wufei smiled gently and then rose up, holding out a hand. "You can hold on to me if it will make you feel better."

She stared at his hand. Then looked up at him. He could see it in her eyes; saw her carefully folding her fear away. He smiled encouragingly, and pulled her up when she took his hand. It overbalanced her slightly. For the briefest of moments, she was very close to him. Wufei stepped back, and was gratified when she shifted her hand to link with his. "Let's go."

* * *

The small dining room was unpleasantly warm. Heero sat by a window, and looked up as Riko and Wufei slide into the seats next to him. He nodded to them and then looked around to check on Duo again. Duo was still at the bar, waiting for their drinks. Duo glanced over his shoulder, checking to see if Heero was still there. Heero gave him a nod and turned back to Riko and Wufei. "Have you unpacked, checked and secured your room?"

"Yes. As far as I can tell, we've never been in the room but it's the same room."

Heero nodded, and began typing on the laptop in front of him. He added Wufei's observations to his own. Next to his laptop, his phone buzzed with several new text messages. Picking them up, all of them seemed to be from Jules. He deleted all of them.

"I believe once Trowa and Quatre have finished unpacking, we will meet to decide our next course of action." He turned his laptop and brought up a map. "According to this, we have moved east from our last position. We're supposedly in a different place."

"But it's the same; even the billboard hates us here." Riko gestured out the window. The woman in the billboard stood, her back turned and hands on her hips.

Heero sighed. "We haven't seen the nun again since we arrived." He looked around, "And none of these people are people I recognise from the last time we had dinner in Happiness."

Wufei nodded, "I agree."

Duo arrived with two cups of coffee; he nodded to Wufei who got up.

"Riko," Wufei said, "What do you want to drink and eat?"

"Um…" She swallowed, "Coffee and just some toast."

He nodded, casting the briefest of glances at Heero who flicked his eyes toward Riko and nodded back to Wufei. Riko almost moved to get up as Duo sat down beside her. Duo raised a hand to stop her, "Nah, honey, we got you."

She glanced between them, and Heero nodded to her again. Realising what had just passed between the pilots was more of their silent conversations; she felt a ripple of rage. Raising a hand to pinch her nose, she took a long calming breath. "Okay."

Duo smiled apologetically, "You'll get used to it."

"I doubt it."

That brought a chuckle out of Duo, who swirled a spoon in his coffee. "Yeah, you will."

* * *

Quatre stared out the window, lost in thought. This place was different. This place was the same. Everything was slightly worse for wear, as if nobody had been here for a long time. Yet, he could see people in the street. He wondered if they looked a little older, more worn. A touch to his back made him turn, and Trowa looked at him with some concern. "Are you okay?"

"Just thinking," Quatre folded his arms. He tilted his head and looked at Trowa. "Whatever it is did not want us to leave, and yet it let us leave only to bring us back? That doesn't make sense."

"No, but neither does the billboard or the thing you saw. Why does it keep Duo's attention but not yours? Why does the billboard sometimes change but not always?" Trowa shrugged, "Why do we seem to only receive messages and calls from Jules, but can't contact anyone else?"

Quatre smiled despite himself, "Oh that's easy, you have a crazy ex-boyfriend who works in central records and he's hacked the system."

"Hah hah." Trowa rolled his eyes, "Shall we go get some food?"

"I suspect the others are already down there." Quatre nodded, "Let's go."

As they got into the lift, they were surprised to stop at another floor and two other men got on. They were dressed in uniforms that neither Quatre nor Trowa had seen in over a decade. The men gave the two pilots a passing glance, before standing in front of them.

Another stop saw another man get on to the lift, and nod at the other two men. The men were soldiers; their uniforms marked them as Oz ground troops. The newest soldier glanced at Trowa and Quatre briefly, before turning his attention on his peers. His voice was as low as a whisper could be in such an enclosed space. "Are you getting through to central command?"

"Nothing." Said one man, "Nothing at all. However, any day now."

"It feels like it's been any day now for a century." Grumbled one of the men as the lift stopped at another floor, the three soldiers got off. Quatre waited until the doors closed before looking at Trowa.

"This feels like we've entered another level."

Trowa nodded, "Soldiers who don't appear to realise the war is over, check."

Rolling his eyes as the lift doors announced their arrival, Quatre stepped out. "I'm beginning to think that Wufei was right to consider this a long cliché." He glanced at Trowa, "You'll still set on serial killers?"

Trowa snorted, "Oh yes. Serial killers we can deal with, we'd only need Heero's small bag. Still set on cannibals?"

Quatre shrugged blithely, "Would rather take cannibals on, sounds like an interesting challenge."

Trowa thought about it for a moment and held the door to the cafe open, "How about serial killing cannibals?"

"Do you think Heero packed an axe?"

"An axe?"

"Can't take on serial killer cannibals with a gun, that's just not sporting."

"Sporting?" Trowa chuckled, "You want to give serial killing cannibals a sporting chance?"

"Ah yes, it's all about ensuring I have the best possible chance to kick the shit out of something." Quatre paused in the door with Trowa and scanned the room. Riko was sat with Duo and Heero while Wufei stood at the bar, ordering. He blinked when he felt Trowa touch his elbow. Quatre looked back, his head tilted with a silent question.

"I..." Trowa frowned and took a step back out of the dining room. Quatre followed him, concerned. Trowa took a breath and nodded once. "I'd like to talk to you properly. I think I…" He looked down for a moment, before nodding. "I'd like to talk about our break up… you said it was affecting you?"

Quatre's lips pressed together for a moment. "Yes. I'm struggling with … how much I miss you."

"I miss you too." Trowa's green eyes were intense for a moment. "I made the wrong decision with Jules but… I want to do right by you." His normally closed expression briefly turned vulnerable. "I've missed you… despite all the shit, this has been … fun. I'd forgotten how much I enjoyed your company." He paused, jaw working as if he wanted to say one thing but decided to say instead: "I thought maybe we could be friends again?"

Quatre took a hesitant step back, "I'm not sure we can be friends." He squared his shoulders, looking away ashamed. "I still feel quite strongly for you. You were quite clear you didn't want-"

Trowa's intake of breath was sharp. Quatre looked at him.

For a moment neither man said anything.

Trowa looked away first. "I never said—"

"No more attachments." Quatre said, his voice soft. "You didn't want me to be so close."

"I was wrong." Trowa looked at him, green eyes welling. "I was wrong. Please."

Quatre sighed. "I…" He shook his head slightly, "I don't think I can be friends." He closed his eyes when he realised Trowa's lips were trembling. He felt Trowa take a step forward, felt him wrap Quatre in a hug. Felt Trowa press his nose against his hair.

Trowa took a deep breath. "Okay. I understand."

Quatre opened his eyes as Trowa stepped back, discreetly looked away as Trowa raised a hand to wipe at his eyes.

"I'd—" Trowa cleared his throat. "I'd rather not leave it at this. You're clearly hurting, and… I miss you. If you can, I would like to talk this out more."

"Yes, I suppose we could sit down." Quatre folded his arms, and cocked his head. "But perhaps afterwards."

Trowa looked like he disagreed, opening and then closing his mouth. He nodded, "Of course."

Quatre touched his shoulder, "That's not to say we're not able to talk. I just want to do it in a place where I can be reasonably certain we can go without interruption or serial killer cannibals."

"I want to make sure you know that I don't want to continue like this..." he took a breath, and then said very carefully, "This uneasy truce. It's like the old days but feels like it could end at any moment. I hadn't realised how much I missed your sense of humour and..." He sighed and looked away, "I just missed you."

Quatre squeezed his shoulder, "I missed you too. I don't know how to fix it by myself…" He dropped his hand and took a step back, "But we need to talk properly." He glanced over his shoulder into the dining room. "We should join the others."

"Yeah." Trowa didn't sound satisfied, but walked into the room.

"We need to look at the train station here." Quatre tapped the map in front of them. "We know that she left the town and headed east. I think we have moved east, and the next question to answer is why would the town simply replicate itself?"

"I agree we need to check out the train station." Duo leaned forward, "But I am getting concerned that we can't seem to find a route to Professor Leighton's camp site at the quarry." He tapped a different place on the map, "According to Riko's exchange, she should have met him at the docks, but when we went there, nobody seemed able to talk to us."

"Perhaps we can find something in this version." Riko sipped her drink, "I mean, maybe there's something here and we can use it to figure out." She hummed for a moment, "Maybe we should split up again, we'd cover more ground that way... one group go to the docks and..." She trailed off, looking around her. Duo and Quatre were looking at each other, Trowa was frowning and Heero was shaking his head. She looked at Wufei who held a hand over his eyes, "What?"

"We totally should." Quatre replied, sounding a little less like the authoritative leader she'd come to know, and more like ... well, Duo. Duo nodded enthusiastically. Quatre laughed once he caught Riko's confusion, "Sorry. We're not splitting up."

Duo stood suddenly, looking betrayed. "Dude!"

"Hahaha but no," Quatre looked at him with a fondly amused look. "No, Duo, we're not splitting up in a town where the billboard gets angry at us and evil nuns try to spirit you away."

"Couldn't we at least try it out?"

"No." Quatre reached across and tapped his elbow. "Maybe once we've established how hard the town is trying to kill us. Then we can have fun."

Duo sank down into his seat, and sighed and cupped his chin in a hand. "How on earth are we going to get picked off one by one at this rate?"

Heero glanced up from his laptop. "I'm sure the town will find a way to separate us." He said in a consoling manner; "Just keep your eyes open for a chance."

* * *

Wufei sat on the edge of the sofa, drying his hair slowly. He stared at the table, thinking through their plan for the morning. Duo seemed pre-occupied with getting them to split up, but even he had to admit with the inclusion of Riko, they couldn't take the chance with her. Wufei felt warm at the memory of Riko losing her temper over their silent conversation. Slamming her hands down on the table, orange hair flaring around her head as she shouted in frustration, "USE YOUR WORDS, BOYS!"

For someone who was so uniquely unqualified to be here, she was remarkably persuasive.

"What are you smiling about?"

He blinked out of his thoughts and looked at the woman. She was dressed in her tatty short tee, boxers and her orange hair was wrapped in a towel. She raised a hand to steady the towel on her head. "Well?"

"I ..." He blinked, "I'm amused by your attitude. Most people... avoid shouting at Heero…" He paused, thinking. "And me..." He frowned slightly, realising, "And all of us really."

"Because you're terrifying Gundam Pilots who might be on a hair trigger?" Riko snorted disbelievingly, "Yeah, no." She rolled her eyes as she came and sat by him, rigorously drying her hair. "Apparently, ain't nobody seen you guys try to sort out a dinner order. I mean, like yeah..." She paused, strands of orange hair falling over her face. "Argue about who gets what in the spooky hotel in the messed up place that might be trying to kill us. What the actual fuck is wrong with you all?"

"Genuinely, it's important that Heero doesn't order anything," Wufei said, totally serious, "He always insists it needs to be burnt."

Riko side-eyed him hard, "Uh huh. Because that's the important issue at hand here."

He smirked and stood to put his damp hair into a braid.

"What happened to your arm?"

He paused, glancing down at her. Then confused, looked at his arm. "What do you mean?"

"The scar just below your elbow." She pursed her lips. "Your scars are mostly ... well, not normal, but like the kinda scars you see on most vets but that one looks like—"

"I cut myself there." He said, looking away. Concentrating hard on pulling his hair back and tying it. He felt her fingers on his scar, and he felt shame even as his mind filled with red flowers. "It was a promise." He said, dropping his hands from his hair and stepping away from her.

"To who?"

"My wife."

Her dark eyes widened, flicking up to meet his eyes before settling back on his elbow.

"She's dead." Wufei raised a hand, not to cover the scar but to embrace it. "The last time she touched me, it was there. I promised her I'd avenge her."

Riko didn't look like she knew what to say. He chewed his lip for a moment, before he was moved to speak again.

"It's alright."

"It really isn't." Riko looked at him; her dark eyes seemed filled with different emotions. Rage was one he recognised, sadness was another. "She didn't ask you to do that to yourself." It was both a statement and a question at the same time.

"No. I didn't really know how else to make it..." He squeezed the scar, closing his eyes. Red flowers appeared in his mind. "Make it a real thing I could feel."

Her fingertips were cool on his forehead, pushing a stray lock of hair out of the way. "I get that." She paused thoughtfully before snorting lightly, "But … tattoos are totally a thing you can do."

He opened his eyes, glancing away from her. "You should get some sleep. We're probably going to be quite active tomorrow."

"Sleep with me."

Wufei snapped his head toward her. Her own dark eyes widening as she realised what she'd said, Riko began to colour. She stammered, "I-I mean, like - in the bed, you should- I mean, not like- the sofa isn't—" She clapped her hands over her face, and crouched down, making a small frustrated noise.

Biting a lip, Wufei crouched down beside her. "If you are alright sharing your bed with me, I'd..." He snorted, reaching out to fluff her damp hair, careful to adopt a teasing tone. "I'd love to sleep with you."

"Shut up!"

"Just be glad nobody else is here, the other pilots would run with this for months."

She peeked out of her hands at him, "And what, you're only going to run with it for…?"

"A few hours. Minutes really."

"Fuck you, pilot."

He stood, holding out a hand. "That's the spirit, Riko."

She stared up at him, colour in her cheeks receding. She took his hand, and stood up beside him. He squeezed her hand, adoring how she couldn't quite look at him. "You don't need to do this for me. I can just sleep on the sofa."

She worked her jaw for a moment, still not quite making eye contact. "You're probably going to save my butt at some point, don't want you missing because your back was out." She glanced at him quickly, "That's what I meant."

He looked at her, smiling as he felt warmth creep up from her hand. He ran his thumb over her wrist where he knew there was a tiny blue flower.

"I know."


	16. It's all in vain

**Disclaimer**: hahahahahahaha… I'm so old. You know the score.

**Notes**: Quatre sees Trowa. Trowa sees Quatre.

_**Song**__: Within Temptation – In Vain_

* * *

_Nothing of the heart remains_

_Even if we could've stayed_

_We've been here long enough_

_Long enough to know it's all in vain_

_Everything we tried to say_

_Up until the final day_

_I guess we said enough_

_Said enough to know it's all in vain_

* * *

**Eldritch Holiday**

By Doctor Megalomania

* * *

_See the world through a tear, keep on breathing_

_Salt has dried, you're not here_

_Just a heartbeat away, the demons walk in_

_Now I know it's too late_

* * *

**Chapter 15** – It's All In Vain

* * *

Quatre took a long deep breath as he stepped out of the shower. Taking time to dry himself thoroughly, he took the time to look at himself in the mirror. The person who stared back didn't smile; bright blue eyes were dull and tired despite how much he'd needed the shower. The bathroom was grimy, run down. Brown streaks of dust covered every surface. Wrapping the towel firmly around his waist, Quatre took another calming breath before stepping out into his shared bedroom.

The man on the bed was broken and sobbing openly.

Surprised, he blinked.

Quatre glanced at the door; it was closed. He looked at the window; it was raining hard. Behind him, the steaming bathroom he'd left the light on in was cold and dark. He swallowed, hesitant to alert the man on the bed to his presence. Heero had spoken a little at dinner about the time skip in which he'd seen the future version of Duo kill himself. They'd talked somewhat about what Heero had seen. Quatre had been prepared for troubled times, that Heero might get hurt…

But seeing Trowa openly sobbing on the bed was hard to distance his heart from.

Quatre looked around the room. By the door, both his and Trowa's bags were packed and ready to go. There was a discarded pile of clothes, sodden and bloody by the table. Weapons that Trowa would normally carefully store away were scattered nearby.

He turned his attention back to the man on the bed.

Trowa seemed largely unharmed, though his hands were bandaged. He wore clean clothes; his visible ear and the side of his head was cut but freshly cleaned. Quatre couldn't see his face. He chewed on his lip for a moment, before awkwardly clearing his throat.

The man on the bed stiffened, hands dropping from his face in shock. Reddened eyes widened, as Trowa slowly rose from the bed.

Quatre blinked; it was strange to see someone in such distress and yet he couldn't feel the waves of what must have been wretched sadness. It helped him, and he stared steadily until Trowa stood before him.

Lightning briefly lit the dark room, and Trowa's shock seemed to fade from him.

"Of course. This is why." Trowa raised a trembling hand to his forehead, pushing his hair out of the way. His dark green eyes searched Quatre's body for a long moment before snapping up to look at Quatre's face. "You knew this would happen." He said flatly, no accusation in his voice. "You knew we'd—"

Quatre winced as a sharp pain blossomed in his mind.

Trowa moved a hand to cover his mouth, clearly feeling the same pain.

The pain passed.

"Of course." Trowa took a step back, his hands dropping to hang limply at his side.

"Heero said…" Quatre began cautiously, "Duo thought he'd killed Heero."

"He …" Something ugly twisted Trowa's lips, "He got you both killed. I couldn't…" Rage gave way to sadness, "I didn't stop him. I…" Trowa raised his hands to look at them; Quatre couldn't see what kind of injuries he had beyond the bandages. "I didn't… I should have…" Trowa looked beyond his hands, looking at Quatre, "I should have told you. I love you." The words broke through him, rushing almost falling over each other. "I love you so much. I regret everything, I didn't realise how you loved me so, and how much you …" He clenched his hands tightly, sinking to his knees heavily. Fresh bloody patches blossomed on the bandages. "I should have begged on my knees. Take me back, I should have begged you. I should have called. Should have put away my pride. Jules was nothing compared to you." Trowa hung his head heavily, as if he couldn't bear the weight of his shame. "You were everything I ever wanted…"

Quatre stared down at him, his own sadness welling in his eyes. "You don't need to beg. I wouldn't want yo—"

Bandaged hands shot out, grasping desperately at the towel wrapped around his waist. Trowa's dark green eyes were wide and wild, tears streaming. "I should have!" He shuffled forward painfully on his knees. "I wanted you! I could have kept you!"

Quatre slowly crouched down, resting his hands gently on Trowa's bandaged hands. "We broke up for the right reasons." He spoke quietly, as if trying to reassure Trowa. "We weren't good for each other, the way we were…"

"I wasn't honest with you! I left you because I thought I wanted freedom!" Trowa's voice cracked with his disbelief, "I left you because I thought I could have more!" He pulled his hands from Quatre's and grabbed Quatre by the shoulders. His fingers dug into him and Quatre couldn't stop the wince of pain as Trowa shook him firmly. "You don't understand, I was wrong! And now…" His grip loosened, "I…" He sat back slowly on his heels, collapsing in on himself, horror growing in his eyes.

"I'll never hold you again."

His bandaged hands dropped from Quatre's arms.

"I… will never…"

Quatre felt his throat close at the sight of Trowa's eyes overflowing with tears.

"I love you." Trowa said finally, "I wish I could change it all. I wouldn't have let you come here."

Quatre reached out and touched his hand gently. "I wanted to come here."

Reverentially, Trowa gathered Quatre's hand up in his own bandaged hands and brought it up to his lips. He kissed Quatre's open palm gently. He took a deep breath, breathing in the smell of Quatre's skin. His dark green eyes opened with a surety that Quatre didn't recognise.

"I wanted to talk before. I won't get the chance. You'll never forgive me. This is it. This is the moment." Trowa said, reaching forward with one hand to clasp Quatre's cheek. "I love you, I still love you. Even though I've tried a dozen times to replace you, I can't. I regret …" He faltered, "I regret leaving you. I wish I had done it in a better way. I wish I hadn't done it at all. I should have changed myself." His dark green eyes searched his face, bandaged fingers gently tucking strands of blond hair away from his forehead. "You are the freedom I have always searched for. Forgive me, love. I did not know my home."

Quatre felt a hot tear slip down his face. "I'm… nothing without you. I'm incomplete."

Trowa shook his head. "No, you're not."

"I want you back."

Trowa's smile was heart breaking, purest joy shone. "Then take me." He moved suddenly, moving forward, hand tightening in Quatre's hair, pulling him forward.

Quatre overbalanced with the motion, eyes closing in anticipation. He felt a hot breath before he felt Trowa's lips brush over his gently.

"Can I kiss you?"

Quatre opened his eyes, surprised. Trowa's dark green eyes were warm. "Yes."

Trowa's eyes were filled with gratitude, so much Quatre was surprised he couldn't feel it.

Their kiss was slow, delicate.

Trowa pulled away when his lips began to tremble with emotion. He swallowed hard, "I shouldn't have let you go."

"I still love you." Quatre confessed, "I keep trying to stop…"

"I knew it then, and I still walked away." Trowa pressed his forehead against Quatre's, "Forgive me."

"I don't know how to stop," Quatre felt tears close his throat, dropping his hands into his lap, twisting them in the towel. "I'm trying so hard."

"You are the greatest moment in my life," Trowa raised a bandaged hand to brush away Quatre's hair from his eyes, "I know I will never know this again." His smile turned bitter, "I remember. This moment. What happens next. I never thanked you."

He leant forward, pressing one more kiss against Quatre's forehead.

"Thank you."

Quatre closed his eyes.

* * *

Trowa debated knocking at his shared room's door. He stared hard at the door, as if it would answer him. He'd left because Quatre had wanted a shower in peace. He'd walked down to the dining room, and stared out the window for a while. Nothing extraordinary happened. Bored, he'd walked back to the room. Quatre would surely be finished showering and dressing by now. Bitterly, his mind showed him brief flashes from his memory of Quatre freshly washed, the flex of Quatre's lithe body as he pulled on clothing.

Trowa briefly rested his forehead against the door, biting his lip, remembering the feel of Quatre's hips flexing in the shower during any of the many times Quatre had graced him with his body. Pushing away from the door, he briefly thought about walking in unannounced. His hand went to the door knob, but he paused.

His phone buzzed in his pocket.

Rolling his eyes at his own inaction, Trowa grasped the doorknob firmly and twisted it hard. He jumped as he heard a noise from the door like a gunshot, and burst forward into the room.

Quatre was knelt on the floor, his eyes wide. His hands were twisted in his towel about his waist.

"Are …" Trowa hesitantly closed the door, the latch clicking like normal. He frowned at it, and then turned his attention back to Quatre, who was rising uncertainly from the floor. "Are you okay?"

Quatre seemed to stare at the bed, and Trowa could see him thinking hard. Quatre nodded as if coming to a decision. "Later might not be better." He looked at Trowa hard. "I don't know what's going to happen, but I expect it will not allow us to finish this."

"Finish—" Trowa felt his back hit the door, as Quatre threw himself into Trowa's arms. He put his hands up and touched Quatre's bare back. A thrill went through him until he ruthlessly crushed it. He moved his hands to touch Quatre's shoulders and push the other man back. Quatre's eyes were wide and blue, so blue. Trowa forced himself to look away, his attention drawn down the delicate white of Quatre's shoulders until he saw the angry red crescents. He frowned and Quatre followed his gaze. Shifting slightly, the back of Quatre's shoulder had four similar crescents in his shoulders on both sides. Trowa shifted his hands slightly, and saw with growing dread that his hands fit the pattern. "What happened?" Trowa asked, firmly. "Who did this—?"

Quatre licked his lips, crushing his eyes shut, shaking his own head. "We." He started and then swallowed hard. "We will never have time." Quatre's bright blue eyes flared open again, and he tipped forward to crush his lips against Trowa's. Trowa didn't know what to do with himself; his hands on Quatre's smooth arms, feeling overwhelmed by the touch. He felt the towel Quatre had been wearing work itself loose and drop on his feet.

It was enough to snap his determination.

He broke the kiss like a thirsty man, shoving Quatre back enough to pull his own top off. He threw it to the floor and reached out to grab Quatre back. Quatre came willingly, mouth open and wet. Trowa didn't want to close his eyes, but felt his control slipping. Quatre's clever fingers threaded in his hair, pulling in a way that was all together too familiar. It made Trowa moan as he ran his hands down Quatre's back, taking care to scrap fingernails in all the places he'd tried so hard to forget.

Quatre gasped, breaking their kiss just for a moment. It made Trowa grin in a wicked smugness. He pushed Quatre back, forcing them off the door and staggering blindly toward the bed. Those teasing fingers slipped out of his hair, and tugged demandingly at his belt. Trowa just about managed to kick off his shoes, unwilling to take his hands off Quatre's body.

By the time they'd fallen onto the bed, side by side, Trowa wrestled off his trousers and underwear. Quatre's kisses were savage, a dizzying mix of kisses and bites. Trowa felt Quatre's erection brush against his, felt Quatre grasp them both and tug. He felt his eyes roll back in his head for one long moment, before coming back to himself. He throbbed in Quatre's hand, opened his mouth and devoured Quatre's kisses desperately. Slipping a hand under Quatre, he found the leverage to pull Quatre's smaller body on top of his. He felt himself almost lose it as Quatre's hand rubbed their cocks together.

He ran his hands over Quatre's side, almost at a loss. Quatre had never been so dominant in their lovemaking before. Trowa moved his hands to Quatre's hips and pushed and pulled until they were sitting up. For a moment, Quatre sat back to breathe. Trowa took the moment to run his tongue up through the sparse hair on Quatre's chest, reaching for his throat. Felt a rapid pulse under his lips. Felt clever fingers wind into the back of his short hair. Strong hips buck under his hands.

He reached between them and clasped their cocks together again. This time taking care to rub them together, feeling his cock up against Quatre's, taking pleasure of the slide of Quatre's against his piercings. "Fuck." Trowa drew out the first letter.

Clever fingers tightened in his hair, and Trowa looked up. Quatre's blue eyes were wide, slightly unfocused. His hips moved over Trowa's and Trowa pushed back as he watched a clever tongue dart out and lick dry lips. Quatre's smile was knowing, and it made Trowa throb.

"I …" Trowa started, distracted when a teasing hand stroked his pectoral. He tipped his head back, "You don't know…" he tightened his grip, pulling more urgently as his hand grew slicker.

"I do." Quatre replied, making him snap his head back. "I know."

Despite his body knowing the rhythm, his hand faltered. "We should—"

Quatre's hips bucked impatiently. "I don't want to—"

Somewhere in the room, Trowa's phone began ringing loudly.

It was enough to break their rhythm entirely, and Trowa dropped his hands to the mattress. Quatre calmly wound both arms around Trowa's neck, and they stared at each other while Trowa's insistent phone rang. Trowa watched as Quatre's bright blue eyes tracked down to their crotches and then slowly make his way back up again. His smile was bittersweet. "I… I uh… just had an interesting conversation with you. A you from the future, I mean."

"Did you?" Trowa asked, slowly placing his hands on Quatre's slim hips. "I hope I didn't kill myself in front of you."

Quatre nodded, "You didn't." He rolled his hips, putting his hands on Trowa when Trowa went to lift his hands off. "But it wasn't something I want to let happen."

"Is that why…?" Trowa glanced down between them, flicking his eyes back up to meet Quatre.

"I still love you. I can't be your friend…" Quatre shifted, and embraced Trowa tightly. "We might not have enough time to talk this all through. So, I still love you even though you don't want—"

"I think you have quite enough evidence that I do want you." Trowa countered firmly, "I don't just want to be friends. I want to be with you again."

Quatre sat back slightly, "We can't be the same way we were before."

"No." Trowa wound his arms around Quatre's waist and pulled him close. "But whatever needs to change, I'll do it." He crossed his legs below Quatre, "I'm sorry." He closed his eyes and pressed an ear against Quatre's chest, listening to Quatre's heartbeat. "I'm so sorry."

Trowa swallowed hard, not knowing how to tell Quatre that this felt like coming home.

"I'm going to do it right, this time." He whispered, gratified when he felt clever fingers wind in his hair.

His phone stopped ringing abruptly.

* * *

Quatre stood at the platform, staring down at the pristine train tracks. Unlike the tracks, everything about the train station was destroyed. A smouldering ruin stood where the guard's station had been, the bench was broken and the platform cracked. Behind him, he could hear the others investigating the husk of the guard's station. Above him, the sky was a burnt shade of umber; an oppressive colour as if the sun wasn't sure where it was. The air was close, like a storm was ready to descend on them. He glanced to the right, hearing the distant clanging of rail-track alarms. When he turned to look left, he stumbled back at the sight.

The guard was bleeding from where his dark eyes used to be. Black, thick blood pooled in the holes, and slid down the man's cheeks like rotten tears.

Quatre fought back the wave of revulsion at the sight of the man stood before him; uniform in tatters.

"Time is a flat circle." The man spoke with difficulty, his tongue bloodied and cut on broken teeth. "You knew."

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Duo and Heero approach, guns raised and ready. He held a hand out in a calming gesture. "I saw you as an old man. I didn't see this."

Anger radiated from the guard, but Quatre held his resolve. "You knew." The guard said again, "But you…"

The bells clanged again in the distance.

It seemed to deflate the guard's anger somehow.

"Go to the church." The guard spat, "The one that looks right."

Quatre nodded slowly, "All right."

"She's there. The woman with a head like blue flame." The guard said bitterly, "That's where you will get more." Broken teeth ground in his bloody mouth as the man spat at him bitterly. "You knew."

"I didn't know this would happen to you." Quatre took a step back, holding his hands up carefully. "I wish it didn't happen."

A train horn sounded in the distance and Quatre looked at his friends. Duo and Heero were closer, but lowering their guns. Quatre looked back to where the guard had been standing.

He wasn't there anymore.

But on the platform, there was a small puddle of black blood seeping down onto the tracks.

"Heero, bud." Duo said as he stepped closer to gingerly look over the platform edge. "Did'ya happen to pack an axe?"

Quatre rocked on his heels, stuffing his hands into his pockets. "You don't use axes on ghosts."

"Do use axes on zombies." Duo countered quickly, and glanced back at Heero. "Well?"

"There's two in the truck, and I've got a small axe in my bag." Heero holstered his gun, "But Quatre's right, I'd classify that more as a ghost."

"Uh huh, well." Duo holstered his own gun and stretched his hands thoughtfully behind his head. "Hope you packed salt bullets."

"Hn." Heero glanced at Quatre, "Which church looks right?"

Quatre began to shake his head, starting to open his mouth to say he didn't know when Duo snorted knowingly.

"Oh I know that." Duo turned away from the tracks, "Let's get the others and scram."

Quatre looked at Heero who watched Duo walk away with a suspicious look tinged with sadness. Heero glanced at Quatre, his voice low. "Did the future version of Trowa say anything else?"

"No." Quatre shook his head, "I think you and I should tread carefully."


	17. Come Play My Game

**Disclaimer**: hahahahahahaha… I'm so old. You know the score.

**Notes**: Duo's encyclopaedic knowledge of bad horror movies comes in handy. Wufei is not grateful.

_**Song**__: The Prodigy - Breathe_

_Come play my game, I'll test ya_

_Psychosomatic, addict, insane_

_Come play my game_

_Inhale, inhale, you're the victim_

_Come play my game_

_Exhale, exhale, exhale_

**Eldritch Holiday**

By Doctor Megalomania

_Breathe the pressure_

_Come play my game, I'll test ya_

_Psychosomatic, addict, insane_

_Breathe the pressure_

**Chapter 16 **– Come play my game

The church looked like a nightmare in bricks and mortar.

It rose from the centre of town like a black thorn. The church was boarded up, fenced off and looked like it had been for years. The graveyard was overgrown in places and… broken … in others. Some graves had been disturbed; splintered fragments of what must have been old coffins broke through the ground as if the ground had spat them out. The smell of the place suggested it had happened recently, the mix of earth and decomposition made it difficult to breathe normally. The windows around the church were broken in places, but light didn't seem to enter the building. They couldn't make out anything of the inside from the outside. It looked like there had been a fire at some point, and the smell from the building made them question if the fire had ever been put out. It all felt so wrong.

"Yeah, alright." Trowa stuck his hands into his coat pocket, and nodded, "That looks right."

"Oh for fuck's sake." Wufei whispered, his head dipping in disappointment. "You were right, Duo Maxwell."

Duo snorted, "Louder."

Wufei groaned, tipping his head back to the sky to say much louder, "You were right, Duo Maxwell!"

"So, like, what now?" Riko glanced doubtfully at Duo, who looked up at the decaying church with increasing glee.

Duo blinked as if he only just remembered she was there. He rubbed his hands together. "Now? We check if we've got a vest for you." He tilted his head, glancing her body up and down with a calculating look, "You're what? A medium?"

"What?" Riko looked to Wufei who was nodded as if that made sense. "What vest?"

"Combat, Riko." Quatre replied, turning sharply on his heel. "We might be going in there, but we're not going in without some basic preparation." He paused to glance up and then back down at his watch. "We're losing light. We'll go in for a look, but we're out of there before the sun sets." He gestured to the van, "Let's get suited and booted."

Quatre looked at Heero, and made a quick gesture that looked like a circle at his forehead. "Heero, have you got-?"

"Yes." Heero moved to pull out his combat laptop, and brought it online. "I'll set it up. Night-?"

"Night."

"Understood."

Riko looked between Heero and Quatre, patiently waiting for them to finish their sentences. She felt a tug on her arm, and stared balefully at a sympathetic Wufei. He gave her a half-hearted smile, "Helmet cams to record. Night vision recording is available."

She sucked on a tooth for a long moment before shaking her head, "How you don't go insane is a fucking miracle."

As Wufei checked over her combat vest's straps, Riko looked around. Heero was sat in the car, tapping away at his laptop. He was checking the camera feeds from their helmets. Quatre and Trowa were checking over each other's straps and holsters. Duo was helping Wufei kit out Riko. While they wouldn't give her a gun, they had strapped a knife to her boot and a spare torch to her back. Duo handed her a set of bolt cutters, while he picked up an axe from the back of the vehicle. He attached it to his vest, briefly testing how quickly his jury-rigged strap would release.

Heero got out and secured the car once everyone had confirmed they'd gotten everything. He walked over to Riko, and pulled the strap on her helmet tighter. He frowned, "Maybe…" He seemed to pause and then shook his head, "If it's a choice between being able to see and the helmet, ditch it."

"It's your only spare."

He adjusted the helmet one more time, dark blue eyes boring into hers seriously. "Ditch it if you need to."

"Alright." Riko touched his hand, "Thank you."

Heero nodded stiffly at her. "Keep alive and keep low." He called over his shoulder, "We're ready."

Quatre pointed ahead. "We're going through the front, and then we'll see what we have." He motioned to Riko to move towards the locked fence, "Cut the chain on the fence and then follow Wufei with about half a metre's clearance."

Once she cut the chain on the fence, she watched as the five pilots dropped into a practice formation. Wufei held up three fingers, then two, then one. He moved forward, not even looking at her. She followed behind him, aware that Trowa was behind her. In front of them all, Heero, Duo and Quatre carefully walked toward the church. They followed the path, evenly spread and keeping an eye out around them. Riko blinked as the shadow of the church seemed to deepen the darkness around them. Without a signal it seemed, all five pilots reached up and tapped the torch on their shoulders. Riko fumbled with hers until Trowa reached forward and tapped it on for her. They approached the doors, and found them slightly open.

Quatre seemed to frown as he looked in. Sharing a glance with Duo and Heero, the three un-holstered their guns and carefully entered. Behind her, Trowa did the same while Wufei held his hand out to Riko. They walked in, the pilots stepping confidently and without too much noise. Riko winced as she heard her own footsteps. In front of her, Wufei treaded slowly, holding her hand tightly as he walked in front of her, his gun lowered by his side ready. Behind her, she felt Trowa place his hand on her shoulder to help pace her. He pushed in a counterbalance to the pull that Wufei gave her.

The church was dark, pews lying overturned. There was no light from outside, even from the windows despite the dying sunset outside.

"Maybe we should come back tomorrow." Duo whispered urgently to Quatre, "Can't see shit here. We might trip on something." He paused, scanning the room, "I got a bad feeling about this."

"And what? Walk merrily into becoming even more doomed?" Trowa said, his voice sounded annoyed. "The guard said we'd find what we need here."

Quatre made some kind of gesture which made all of the pilots pull in tight; Wufei guided Riko to the circle they made. Quatre leaned in, "Let's take a quick look and-"

"I think we should give it a bit more time." Heero said over his shoulder as he faced outward.

"It should still be light outside." Quatre shook his head, "It looks like it's a different time zone out there. What if..?"

"You know this is the perfect time to split up, right? Cover more ground before it gets too late." Duo snorted bitterly, "But seriously, there's nothing here." He frowned for a moment as if he was waiting for something. He rolled his eyes, and then raised his voice. "But seriously, there's nothing here!"

Wufei twitched as he spat, "What are you—"

Duo held up a hand, and somewhere in the dark there was a low moan. Duo's grin was bright. "Oh, that's probably nothing!" He said loudly, "Me and Heero will go check it out!"

Riko looked at Quatre who was pinching the bridge of his nose, a look of frustration on his face. He signalled to Trowa to go with them.

As Duo, Heero and Trowa moved in the direction of the moaning, Riko found herself with Quatre and Wufei stood either side of her. Behind her, the door to the church creaked ominously.

"I hope that's the wind," she said to herself, not expecting the others to hear her.

Quatre and Wufei both responded at the same time, their tones flat. "It's probably not the wind."

"Hmm..." Duo walked carefully with Heero and Trowa both behind him, "Sounded like it came from behind the altar table." He crossed himself more out of habit than anything else, as he passed the choir aisles. His torchlight bounced off a dusty table, dull metal and then… a leg.

Making a quick gesture to the others over his shoulder, he raised his gun and made a wide approach. The leg was still. As he came around the table, he could see that the leg was attached to a man. Or what was left of a man. Duo crouched in front of the desiccated corpse. The man looked as if he'd had all his blood drained from his body; as if every drop of moisture had been sucked away. The body's face was sunken, eyes closed and his hands were clasped around a book. Duo glanced up; Heero was on one side of the table, scanning the room. Trowa was on the other, head tilted as he looked at something on the table.

Duo glanced back down at the body in front of him, and was somewhat unsurprised to see that it had shifted.

Only a little.

The body's eyes were open now, deep sunken balls that looked like they had shrivelled like grapes. The eyes stared off into the distance.

"Yup." Duo nodded and then stood up, taking a step away from the corpse, out of reach. He glanced around again quickly.

Heero was staring at a box.

Trowa was reaching for a vial that sparkled oddly in the torch light on the table.

Ahead, Wufei and Quatre were standing guard while Riko seemed to be moving closer to the door.

He looked at the corpse again. It had moved again.

"Guys." Duo called out loudly, not taking his eyes off the corpse. "Someone grab Riko. We, uh. We gotta go."

"We got her!" Quatre called back after a moment, "What's wrong?"

"Just." Duo swallowed and flexed his fingers; he'd need to be very quick. Nervously, he moved foot to foot. "Just, look, we uh… we gotta be … like super good at this. 'Cause I'ma gonna touch a thing and it's gonna do a thing and then we're gonna wanna run."

"What the hell are you doing, Maxwell?!" Wufei shouted back, frustration in his voice.

"Look, it's gonna be ok, just nobody touch anything until I tell you to!" He rubbed his hands together and crouched down. He was out of arms reach of the corpse, and put a hand down to balance himself as he rocked forward. "Okay, okay, okay… come on, come on…" He swallowed hard, pushed himself forward and yanked the book out of the corpse's hands. Rocking back onto his feet, he stood. "A'ight. Heero, box. Trowa, the sparkly thing." He looked down as he felt a bony grip on his ankle. "Alright, mother fuckers." Incredibly quickly, he holstered his gun and reached down to grab the head of the corpse. "Time to run!"

"What are you…" Trowa said distractedly, reaching out to grab the vial of the strangely glowing liquid that had caught his eye. Pausing in yanking at the rotting corpse's head, Duo glanced up. He watched Trowa pick up the glowing liquid, which sparkled in his hand for a moment before dimming to a gentle colourless shimmer. Trowa frowned as if he was sad.

"Cool, cool. Okay." Duo nodded. "Time for the creak." The head came off with a sickening dry crack, and Duo gave a little cry of triumph. "Gotcha!"

There was a loud creak somewhere in the basement of the church. Duo jumped a little to shake off the corpse's hand on his leg. "Heero, get the box!"

Heero holstered his gun, and picked up the ornate box in front of him.

"Great, click time."

The pedestal that the box had been on made a weird clicking noise as it began to wind down into the floor. Heero stared at it for a moment, and then looked at the box. He looked at Duo and began running.

"Come on, Trowa!" Duo shook off the hand at last, and started running backwards. "The clunk's next."

"What the fuc-"

There was a nasty grinding noise nearby.

"Oh shit. Worse, WAY WORSE!" Duo turned tail and run, "Barton, RUN!"

Trowa did not need telling again, his long legs pushing him to join Duo. Behind him, the alter table smashed up into the air as something was unleashed behind them. In front of them, Quatre and Wufei began firing at whatever was scraping the stone floor behind them. Heero ran past them, Duo flailing with the book and the rotting head in his hands. "Yuy!" Duo called out, "Box! Anything glowing?"

Trowa raced past Quatre and Wufei, reaching out to grab Riko by the arm and pulled her hard behind him. They ran past Heero and Duo who'd paused outside the church. Wufei fired one more round at the dark thing that had come crashing out of the ground before he turned with Quatre and ran. Duo tossed Wufei the rotting head and stuck his hand into the box. He pulled out a glowing rock and flung it back into the church.

"Keep running!" He yelled, yanking Heero after him.

A bright light and an unholy shriek rend through the air, flinging them all to the ground as if an actual explosion had gone off. They were thrown by the force of the supernatural explosion.

Duo spat out a little grave dirt he'd swallowed and looked over his shoulder. The dark church seemed lighter now, and the moonlight was able to penetrate the. He took a breath and rolled onto his back, holding the book on his chest.

"I've got Riko, she's out." Quatre groaned painfully, "Pilots?"

Heero was beside Duo and pushed himself up. "I'm alright. I dropped the box though."

"I'm good." Duo called out, rolling on to his back to stare at the stars above. He held up the book, "I got the book."

"I've got a glowing liquid and I don't like how it's making me feel." Trowa called, "I'm otherwise fine."

"Got my head, Chang?" Duo pushed himself on to his elbow, to look over towards Wufei.

Wufei held up the rotting head, the jaw hanging open as if in shock. "I fucking hate you, Maxwell."

"Love you too, Chang."

They got up and dusted themselves off. The box that Heero had carried out lay on the ground, shattered to pieces. There were a number of rocks, but only one that glowed with a faint red light. Handing the book to Heero, Duo crouched down by it and stuck his hand out behind him. "Wufei, gimme the head."

Wufei handed over the rotting head, swallowing hard as Duo nonchalantly took the head and held it over the rocks. The head groaned as it passed over the glowing rock. "Yup. We're taking that one." Duo stood up, rock in one hand and head stuffed under his arm.

Wufei stared for a long time at the head before looking at Duo. "Why do we need the head?"

"It's gonna tell us stuff. If I hadn't grabbed the book, we coulda probably talked to it in the church."

"But?"

"But then we woulda probably lost Riko to whatever was calling her from the door."

Wufei opened his mouth to say something, and then looked up, closed his mouth and walked over to where Quatre and Trowa were. Riko was unconscious and lying between them. Riko was pale, but she didn't seem to have any injuries.

"We should get her to the hotel." Trowa moved to pick her up by the knees, leaving Wufei to pick her up by the arms. They carried her over to the car, and belted her in. Heero looked over the church doorway once more time before tapping Duo on the shoulder. "We should go."

"Sure." Duo held up the head in front of him. The thing's jaw was open and the eyes rolled slowly. "So, whatcha got to say?"

The head groaned.

Heero stopped beside Duo and immediately drew his gun, training it on the head.

Duo stood still, arm extended. "Huh. Ok."

"You are not needed." The head said, jaw working slowly. The voice was reedy, faint. "More grist for the mill."

"Uh huh."

"The distant star will rise."

"Yep."

The head's eyes rolled to a stop. "Give me the girl."

"Nope." Duo shook his head, "Not happening. Got anything else?"

"The distant star will rise."

"Said that already." Duo started forward, walking slowly toward the car. "Where's Professor Matsumi?"

"She serves the distant star. As I served the distant star before her."

"Huh. Who are you?"

"I serve the distant star."

"Uh huh." Duo paused to glance at Heero, "Maybe we should take a photo? See if anyone recognises—"

"Leighton." This was a broken whisper, filled with sadness and regret.

Duo paused and looked at the head, "What?"

The head's eyes lolled, lips trembling with the effort, "My name… was … Leighton."

"Shit. I'm sorry, dude." Duo started forward again, "How about we get you back to the hotel?"

"I will not leave the distant star."

"Is the star the thing in the church?" Heero asked, lowering his gun fractionally.

"The distant star sleeps."

"We blew up the thing in the church," Duo said, turning to show the head the empty church. "It's gone."

"A mere parasite drawn here by the distant star's supremacy. You cannot destroy the distant star. It is here. We all serve—"

"Nah." Duo gave the head a little shake, "Nope. What about the nun? Is that the distant star?"

"Another parasite." The head spat, "Mere vermin that follows the distant star. You must give yourself to the distant star."

"The billboard?"

The head groaned. Heero tucked away his gun and walked toward the vehicle. Duo shrugged, "Look like ol' Leighton's done for now." He gestured the car. "We should get—What? What, no!"

The head was crumbling into dust as they crossed the threshold of the graveyard. Duo was left with a handful of grotty hair. He shook his hands out, "Well, shit."

Riko opened her eyes; she was strapped into the car, sat upright in the back facing Wufei. She looked down woozily, their helmets and vests were packed away again. Wufei was sat beside her, drinking slowly from a bottle of water. He turned to her when he noticed her moving. He reached over to squeeze her hand, "How are you feeling?" He offered her the bottle, she took it greedily. "Slowly," he cautioned. "You've been out for about 10 minutes."

She slowed down her drinking, and raised a hand to wipe her mouth gingerly. She swallowed before she tried to speak, "Where are we?"

"Heading back to the hotel." Wufei gestured a box at the back of the car, "We've taken a few items from the church." He tilted his head, "What did you see?"

Riko blinked, "Where?"

"At the church. What caught your attention?"

She frowned, thinking hard. "There… the door it was…" She raised a hand and pressed the heel against her forehead hard, "The door was open, I thought I should… go. I thought… I heard my auntie. But she wasn't there…" She sat back, looking pale. "I don't know."

Wufei looked at her with a grim expression, nodding slowly. "Try to stay closer."

She nodded. She breathed for a moment, looking down at his clasped hands in his lap. A memory of him firing his gun came back to her. "What were you shooting at?"

He seemed surprised, "You didn't see it?"

Riko tried to see the memory of the thing, but she could only see the door in her mind. It chilled her, and she raised her eyes to look at him. She mutely shook her head.

"It …" Wufei paused, looking away. "It was a thing of… oil and … shadow. I have never seen anything like it, outside of my nightmares." He snorted half-heartedly, "Definitely not pirates."

While the others walked Riko in carefully, Quatre got out of the car slowly, his gaze drawn up to the billboard. The woman was far in the distance, just a dark shadow on the painted horizon.

'_The distant star must not rise.' _

"A bit on the nose." Quatre muttered tiredly, reaching a hand to rub his neck. He walked to the back of the vehicle, peering into the cooler box with Duo. The rock was no longer glowing, the book seemed to be just dusty, the vial glimmered with a dull light. Quatre reached in to pick up the vial, almost dropping it when sadness washed over him. "So, the evil book, glowing rock and…What the hell is this and why does it make me feel weird?" Quatre tapped the glass on the vial of strange liquid, "Is it evil elixir? Evil perfume?"

"Probably something vitally important to whatever the distant star is doing." Duo replied, his hands jammed in his pockets. "Or it's nothing, and we've picked up mcguffins." He rocked on his feet thoughtfully, "How about Evilixir?"

Quatre sighed, putting the vial in the cooler box. "Yeah, evil stuff can stay in the car tonight." He closed the lid and looked at Duo. "How did you know what was in the box would stop the thing under the altar?"

Duo shrugged, "I dunno."

"Then—"

"Look dude, it just looked like something evil nazis would use to perform a black magic ritual to summon something that would empower them." Duo explained plainly, "But obviously anything like that would be booby-trapped so…" he trailed off at Quatre's conflicted look. "What?"

Quatre shook his head slowly. "Just coming to the realisation that I need to watch more bad movies with you." He looked down, "I am woefully under prepared in this situation."

"You can join the Maxwell institute of surviving horror movies." Duo nodded thoughtfully, "Probably for the best." Duo took a look at the billboard, "She doesn't seem happy."

Quatre folded his arms, "Probably not a fan of the distant star." He dipped his head in a slow nod, "We're probably just in some kind of no-man's land. The distant star and the billboard don't appear to be working together on this… whatever this is." He smiled lopsidedly as he clapped Duo on the shoulder, "You might be right after all."

"About what?"

"Maybe we're caught between two cosmic entities fighting it out."

Duo looped his arm around Quatre's waist and pulled him in close for half a hug. "Thanks, bud."

They closed the vehicle up, and locked it. Quatre felt the urge to look behind him and felt Duo stiffen. Quatre reached out to hold Duo by the waist and they looked at each other for a moment. Quatre felt a hot moment of rage, but it slowly ebbed away. He felt Duo relax fractionally.

"The nun is here." Duo whispered fearfully, "I… I want to look, I think…" Quatre looked at him, and saw Duo staring straight ahead, seemingly afraid if he even turned his head slightly. "I don't want to go."

"Let's get inside." Quatre moved his hand to push at Duo's back, "If it could, it would come into the hotel." He risked a glance up at the billboard.

The woman was stood a little closer, her head in profile, but her one eye was narrowed in smug pleasure.

Quatre shook his head and held up a middle finger to the billboard.

The message had changed.

'_You won't always be there.' _


	18. All your sanity and wits

**Disclaimer**: hahahahahahaha… I'm so old. You know the score.

**Notes**: Heero is always prepared. Wufei gets a message.

**Song**: _Gogol Bordello – Start Wearing Purple_

* * *

_So yeah, start wearing purple wearing purple!  
Start wearing purple for me now!  
So why don't you start wearing purple?  
Why don't you start wearing purple  
Start wearing purple for me now_!

* * *

**Eldritch Holiday**

By Doctor Megalomania

* * *

_All your sanity and wits, they will all vanish,  
I promise, it's just a matter of time!_

* * *

**Chapter 17 –** All your sanity and wits

* * *

Heero woke up to the repeating clicks of a gun being cleaned.

In the dim moonlight slipping through the curtain, he stared at the dark cracks that spider-webbed across the ceiling. He listened carefully to the clicks because Duo's leg was lying on top of his. Duo was in bed with him, but somewhere else in the room, Duo was cleaning a gun.

He slowly reached for the gun he kept under the pillow. Duo groaned in his sleep, reacting to Heero's body tensing. The clicks kept going, pausing rhythmically. Heero turned his head fractionally. Duo's eyelids twitched; he was deeply asleep but starting to frown. Heero moved carefully to sit up in bed, holding his gun up to point towards the source of the sound; the table.

There was nobody there. No gun at the table.

Taking a breath, Heero slipped from the bed and walked over to the table. He walked around it once and looked back at the bed. Duo wasn't there. Heero blinked once, feeling the fear rise in him. He moved over to the bed and pulled the blankets back. Duo wasn't there.

He heard the clicks again and spun.

There was nothing at the table.

Duo stood staring out of the window. His hands were clenched.

Soft light from the moon painted him in a gentle way.

"Duo?" Heero said, moving towards him quickly. "Duo!"

Staring fixedly out the window with his strange-coloured eyes, pupils reduced to pinpricks; Duo's jaw worked as if he was grinding his teeth with effort. Heero reached out to touch his back and found it rigid. Duo's eyelids flickered momentarily upon contact. Heero tossed the gun on the bed behind him and moved in front of Duo. He wrapped his arms around Duo's neck and moved in to embrace him. "I'm here, Duo," he whispered into Duo's ear. "Whatever it is, just... put it down. Pay attention to me."

Duo began to shake with effort, making Heero pull back and look him in the face. His teeth were clenched, his lips pulled back in a stretched snarl. Deep in his eyes, Heero could see Duo struggling.

"I'm here." Heero moved forward and pressed his whole body into the embrace. He felt Duo's hands twitch, felt Duo's chest shudder with the tiny breaths he was snatching. "Just let it go."

His eyes shot open when he began hearing a set of clicks. This wasn't the click of a gun being cleaned. It was the tap tap tap of something sharp on the glass of the window behind him. Duo shook, his chest stopping.

The air behind him turned distinctly colder, as if the window had been opened. There was another set of clicks on the glass. Slower now.

_tap_. _Tap_. _**Tap**_**.**

Heero concentrated on taking a deep breath. _Tap_. He felt the urge to look behind him. _Tap_. He held his breath for a moment. _Tap_. Behind him, he knew he'd see the nun with the bends in the wrong places. **Tap**.

Duo wasn't breathing. His shaking was worse.

TAP.

Heero opened his eyes and stared into the room. Their shadows stretched before him, and around them he could see limbs that shouldn't be possible.

TAP.

Pulling back further, he looked into Duo's face. Fury was in his face, the snarl more pronounced. He was fighting as hard as he could, but his eyes watered.

TAP.

The urge to look behind him was overwhelming. Heero fractionally began to turn his head.

TAP.

Duo's hand grabbed his, clawing his wrist. Duo made a noise, a dreadful sucking of air. It refocused him, and he knew what he had to do. He stared into Duo's eyes, silently asking for forgiveness. Duo must have understood because he jerkily nodded.

TAP TAP. **TAPTAP.**

Heero pulled back and quickly drove his fist into Duo's solar plexus. Duo bent over, almost dry heaving as he drew deep gulps of air. "GO!" Duo rasped, flinging a hand out to Heero. Heero did not need telling twice. He squatted, put a shoulder under Duo and hauled him into the bathroom, kicking the door open. He dropped Duo in the bathtub and secured the door.

He flicked the lights on and looked over at Duo, who was panting painfully in the tub. Bracing his back against the door, Heero contemplated their next move. "Status?"

"Operational again." Duo got up slowly out of the tub; he moved to the sink and ran the tap. Brackish, almost brown water ran for a moment, before clear water began running through. "Fucking hell." Duo spat into the sink, scooped a handful of and spat that out as well. "I don't even remember getting out of bed." He glanced at Heero before going to sit on the rim of the bath. "I think I was lucky you woke up."

"I heard the clicking before I saw you."

"Shit." Duo looked around the dingy bathroom. "We can't stay in a bathroom."

"Agreed." Heero walked over the toilet, and opened the cistern. He reached in and took out a sealed plastic bag. Duo blinked as he watched Heero open the bag and withdraw a gun from the contents.

"Okay… okay…" Duo helplessly chuckled, "... Like you are stupid prepared for everything. I mean, I knew!..." He clasped a hand against his chest, "…but I don't think I believed…"

Heero frowned, "I anticipated we might have our rooms broken into; hiding a weapon and other necessary items is a sensible precaution." He tilted a head at Duo, his expression bordering on vague disappointment, "You didn't hide a weapon?"

"Hey, I'm not like the perfect soldier!"

Heero's frown deepened.

Duo snorted and held up a hand, "I'm joshing with you, man." He pulled his braid over his shoulder, and worked the bottom tie loose. He pulled a Balisong from his hair and balanced it on his knee. He did his hair back up again, and then picked up the butterfly knife, quickly demonstrating the knife before flicking it back into its handles.

Heero's expression was thoughtful, if not vaguely impressed. "Your technique is quite polished."

Duo laughed, "It's something to do with my hands, Une thought it would be helpful."

"Une."

Duo shrugged and held a finger up to quote piously, "A bored Gundam is a dangerous Gundam."

Heero looked like he might respond, but changed his mind and shook his head. He pressed an ear against the door, and listened for a long moment. He took a step back. Duo stood up, making a complicated motion his hand and the knife disappeared back into his hair, which freed up his hands. He walked over toward the door, and flexed his fingers before resting a hand on the handle. Heero stood poised, already in position with his gun. As Heero nodded once hard, Duo opened the door in a quick, smooth motion.

Heero tilted his head; the room looked somehow different.

He realised it was the light. Stepping forward from the bathroom's threshold, his careful scan of the room revealed it was exactly as they had left it when they'd turned in for the night. He looked at the window. It was closed, the curtains open. Outside, however, it was day.

"Clear!" He called over his shoulder, and Duo stepped out to look around the room with ill-concealed frustration.

Heero walked towards the window and looked down.

The street below was clear of people; only the billboard remained. The woman on the billboard was looking away, staring over her hill. Shaking his head, he glanced over his shoulder. Duo was stood in the middle of the room, looking at his phone. He compared it to the watch he was wearing.

"We've lost about four hours." He glanced up at Heero, and walked over to show him. Heero looked at the phone and then the watch that Duo had been wearing, they showed the same time. He glanced up at Duo's confused expression.

Duo frowned deeply, "They were different just now, I swear."

"I believe you."

"Man, I'm starting to hate time skips." Duo tossed his phone on the bed, and clapped his hands over his eyes to groan. "I just need a good night's sleep."

Heero walked back into the bathroom to re-secure the gun he'd hidden in amongst the other items he had in the plastic bag. When he walked back out, Duo was holding a t-shirt and staring at it with a lost expression. Heero gently took it from him and tossed it on the table. "It's still early," he said. "We can lie in." He found himself smiling as he watched Duo realise that they were both still dressed in their underwear. "Maybe get some… more sleep."

"Oh, yeah." Duo said, a smile creeping over his face. "I mean... we should definitely sleep..." He seemed to make a decision, and then quickly stripped off his boxers. Nonchalantly naked, he sauntered back to the bed, getting in with exaggerated care. Heero watched Duo as his hand slipped under the covers, and made a very obvious gesture at his crotch. Heero moved to pull the curtains closed and walked over to the bed; smiling as he got in.

* * *

Wufei opened his eyes when he felt a warm hand creep over his chest, under the tshirt he wore. A leg curled over his, the bare skin pressing against him unexpectedly hot. Tipping his head slightly, he saw blazing orange resting on his shoulder. "Uh. Riko?"

One of his arms was trapped under the sleeping woman in his bed; he wiggled it slightly and found he could comfortably cup his hand over the curve of her backside. He felt his face heat up, and pulled himself away from her. Riko muttered slightly in her heavy sleep and rolled over, taking most of the blanket with her. Wufei scooted towards the edge of the bed, sitting up to look down at her. She wound herself around the covers as if she was holding someone close. He glanced down her body, seeing her coiled a long leg over the quilt.

Raising a hand to wipe it over his face and closing his eyes, he took a deep breath, centring himself for a moment. He cracked an eye opened, appreciating the shape of her backside and the muscles in her legs before forcing himself up and into the shower. Under cool water, Wufei ran a hand over his scars. Ran a hand over his chest. Braced himself for the red flowers and was surprised they were blue forget-me-nots instead.

He snapped his eyes open, staring at the wall.

Tried to think of the red flowers, the ones that had been there when Meilin had died. All he saw was her smile. He frowned, not just Meilin's smile. In his mind, he saw hot tears spilling under hands with lime green nails. Heard her laughter as he tried to understand her descriptions of her favourite battles from the war. How patient her smile was as she listened to him. His mind betrayed him. He could smell her hair, her sweat… how warm and rough her fingers were trailing over his body…

Bracing his hands against the wall, he pushed and dipped his head, allowing the water to flow him. He stared down at his feet, water draining down his long black hair, and breathed.

He was towelling off when he heard a quiet knock on the door. Pushing his wet black hair out of his face, and securing his towel with a hand, he opened the door. Riko stood there, one dark eye open. She held out his phone. "It keeps going."

"I thought I turned it off." Wufei frowned, "You can hang up."

"Okay." She nodded sleepily before shuffling back towards the bed. He watched her go before shaking his head and going back into the bathroom to finish drying his body. He was drying his legs and crotch when he caught himself thinking about her shoulder, how the ratty tee she slept in was slipping off. Bright forget-me-nots on her back as well. The blue against her shoulder gave him an unfamiliar hot, spiky feeling.

He shook his head.

* * *

The dining room was mostly empty; the breakfast bar bare. Wufei shook his head at the sight and looked around. Quatre waved at him from the table near the window he was sharing with Trowa. Between them the book lay open. Trowa held up a nutri-bar and a bottle of water. "It would seem we feed ourselves this morning."

Wufei nodded his thanks and opened the bar.

Quatre scratched an eyebrow thoughtfully, "Purely speculation, but the presence of the book, the rock or the liquid or even all three seems to be breaking down some kind of … aspect of this place." He gestured around, "Not only is the food gone, but I haven't seen the staff. The kitchen would suggest there hasn't been anyone here for years."

Wufei chewed thoughtfully on the nutri-bar. "Maybe we're seeing the real Happiness more clearly." He reached over to tap the book, "Maybe this—"

He felt something like an electric shock as his finger touched the page.

"- Ow!" He pulled his hand back, shaking it out. He dropped the nutri-bar and rubbed his hands together. He felt stiff. His leg was damp. The water bottle was empty by his foot. Looking up, he was confused to see lime green fingernails clutching his phone in front of him. He looked up Riko's arm to her face and felt even more confused by her concern. She was stood before him in her pyjamas, her boots unlaced on her bare feet, and a dressing gown. He looked around the table, Quatre was frantically scribbling and Trowa stood behind him, ready with more paper. Quatre finished writing and looked up.

Riko lowered the phone and tapped the screen. "I think… I think he might be back." She looked uncertainly at Quatre.

Quatre nodded, "Maybe." He reached out gently, and touched Wufei's hand. "Wufei, are you … okay?"

Wufei looked at his fingertips, now lightly singed. Looking at Quatre again, he nodded uncertainly. "What…?" he blinked, feeling a little light-headed, his mouth dry. "I just pressed the book. It zapped me."

"That's saying something," Trowa said. He handed Wufei another bottle and glanced at his watch. "As far as we can tell you've been under for about 20 minutes." He gestured Riko, "She tried to give you your phone, and you began telling her that you needed her."

"I what?"

Quatre picked up his scribbled notes and began reading aloud, "I need you to come, you are a dying sun. Your blood is dying, the blue flame gutters. You need to come, you must take her place. The splice comes, it creeps through the board and will gather the fear. Filth parasite. The bent thing comes; it comes to the cursed one and drink the blood. A tiny thing compared to me, a speck of rot. I am the distant star, I command you. Your mortal science is the only way to leave the accursed rock. I have slumbered too long. The accursed rock cannot sustain me anymore. My presence will crush this mortal plane in time. You must come." He paused to look up, taking off his small reading glasses. "You carried on saying the same thing over and over again."

"I recorded it." Riko said, she handed Wufei his phone. "When we realised you were repeating the first message." She crouched down by his seat, "Are… are you actually okay?"

"Of course." He said distractedly, unlocking his phone and dismissing the messages from Jules. He opened his video storage and paused when he realised how warm her hand was on his leg. He put the phone down, and rested his hand on hers. He looked at her, "Really. I feel fine."

Riko dragged a hand through her hair, and nodded. "Okay." She took a deep breath, held it for a moment and then let it go. She stared at him intently, and he knew what she was asking.

Wufei smiled slightly, an echo of the hot, spiky feeling shot through him at the sight of her concern. "I really am fine." He leaned forward, staring intently into her eyes, his voice low and reassuring, "Go have your shower."

It was enough for her, and Riko got up. Trailed her hand slowly over his shoulder to give him one last squeeze before leaving. He watched her leave before turning to pick up his phone. However, he slowly looked up when he realised both Trowa and Quatre were staring intently at him. "What?"

"So…" Trowa slipped into his seat, "When were you going to tell us?"

"Tell you what?"

"About Riko." Quatre tidied the papers to one side and picked up his water bottle to idly sip from. "You seem… close."

"We're sharing a room."

"You shared rooms with Duo," Trowa laced his fingers together and leaned forward. "I don't think you've ever let him touch your shoulder - let alone your leg - like that."

"She's easy to get on with."

"Uh huh." Quatre replied, "So is Sally, but Sally doesn't know the unlock code to your phone." He leant forward, leaning his elbow on the table, his chin in his hand. "Riko didn't even need to ask. You had to lose 20 percent of your blood that one time in Moldova before you told me the code to your phone, remember?"

"I'm just a private person." Wufei shook his head and pocketed his phone, "There's no video on this."

"Shame. Good thing we've got a transcript." Quatre tapped it briefly with his hand, "But let's get back to the important issue here."

Wufei frowned, "Yes, it would seem that the blue flame guttering could refer to Matsumi—"

"How long?" Trowa interrupted.

"What?"

"How long have you two been—"

"We're not." Wufei rolled his eyes, "She's just easy to get along with."

They both narrowed their eyes at him. Quatre sat back, "We're not going anywhere until you tell us everything." He tilted his head, "We are - after all - your friends."

"Family, one might argue. Brothers, even." Trowa nodded, "And as your family, we should definitely be the first to meet your new girlfriend. I hope you would learn from my mistake…"

"We also want to support you with the transition into a new relationship." Quatre added thoughtfully, "It's really important to us all. I just want us to have the facts straight before we need to… _involve_ … Duo."

"First, she's not my girlfriend." Wufei jabbed the table with his finger, "Second, you're terrible friends. Third of all, I'm not taking relationship advice from either of you, since both of…" Wufei narrowed his eyes as he caught a lightening quick glance between them. He nodded knowingly, "I knew it. Oh my," he said, cracking his fingers menacingly. "So quickly does karma work…" He took a deep breath, and nodded. "Now. Who wants to … _involve_ … Duo again?"

He was pleased to see both men tap out of the conversation, silently signalling their defeat.

"Excellent. Now shall we get back to the thing that just took over my body and used me like an answerphone?"


	19. One of God's Mistakes

**Disclaimer**: hahahahahahaha… I'm so old. You know the score.

**Notes**: Riko gets distracted. Quatre is the first to notice. Wufei really isn't dating any of them.

_**Song**__: Placebo – Song to say goodbye_

* * *

_You are one of god's mistakes._

_You crying, tragic waste of skin._

_I'm well aware of how it aches._

_And you still won't let me in._

_Now I'm breaking down your door,_

_To try and save your swollen face._

_Though I don't like you anymore_

_You lying, trying waste of space._

* * *

**Eldritch Holiday**

By Doctor Megalomania

* * *

_A song to say,_

_Before our innocence was lost_

_You were always one of those blessed with lucky sevens,_

_And the voice that made me cry_

* * *

**Chapter 18** – One of God's Mistakes

* * *

Riko adjusted the strap on her helmet, nervously pulling it tighter. They were back at the church. She was sat on the bonnet of the car, and flexed her fingers over the handle of the axe she'd picked up. It was going spare; she'd stolen it from the hotel in a brief moment of impulsive determination. Wufei hadn't said anything as she'd carried it everywhere with her. He seemed relieved that she'd chosen to arm herself, but she couldn't be sure. All of them had been oddly quiet, and she was aware that there was a level of conversation going on to be going on that she didn't fully understand.

Now here at the church, they were quiet in a different way. The pilots were moving swiftly and efficiently. They'd scouted around the whole building, and had drawn up a basic layout of what they could remember. Riko withdrew once she understood there was nothing she could really contribute. Sitting there on the bonnet, she tipped her head back and thought about the stars above the deep hateful orange-hued sky. Here she was, with all her knowledge of space and beyond, and she was useless here on the earth's surface. Riko pulled at her bracelet as she thought about her auntie; her infectious enthusiasm for everything, fingering each bead as if it was a rosary. She took a breath and then calmly stroked her hand over the handle of the axe again. It was old. All-in-one metal construct, the grip some kind of polymer fibreglass mix. The label claimed protection against shocks and heat. She'd never handled a weapon before. When Wufei had silently taken the axe from her and turned it in his hands, she'd understood he had checked its worthiness as a weapon. He moved like he was striking a baseball a couple of times, before nodding and handing it back to her without a word, reassuring her without words it was a suitably lethal weapon.

Something like the wind blew saying something that sounded like her name.

It was a whisper in her mind, she thought. She didn't mean to get up from the bonnet, and certainly didn't mean to drop the axe. Didn't mean to take off her helmet; she could see with it on just fine. It was the puddle though, the whisper seem to come from the puddle. It hadn't rained in days, but this puddle shimmered. Its reflection didn't show the hateful red sky. Riko wondered how it could be doing that.

As she stepped closer, she wondered if she should say something. She turned her head, almost ready to say something. In the corner of her eye, Riko could see it … the thing with the bends in the wrong places. It stood just beyond the puddle. Her breath caught in her chest, and her head stopped turning.

She didn't mean to take another step forward, but once she took the first one, the rest were easier. It was hard to breathe though. She couldn't make herself draw breath. She thought if she could just get one gulp of air, she'd be able to scream. Her jaw clenched shut, grinding hard against her will.

Something stopped her when she stepped into the water.

She looked down and saw her aunt staring in confusion back at her in the water.

Naomi Matsumi looked confused at Riko, looked away, looked afraid and screamed as she crouched down to claw at the water.

Riko Matsumi felt confusion ebb away, felt fear grow in her, felt something tap her head experimentally. Something touched her with something sharp, tap tap tap. It hurt, it was so sharp. She couldn't look up, she could only stare helplessly down at the puddle with its impossible reflection.

She wanted to scream.

Naomi Matsumi screamed silently for her.

She felt something hot and thick slip down her forehead and she used the last of her strength to force her head up to look at the thing. All bends in the wrong places, black and oil suspended in the air. One of many arms extended as it tap tap tapped her head again.

It was amused.

Every time it touched her, it fed off her panic and gave her its twisted amusement.

Defeat overwhelmed her, and Riko suddenly understood that moment Wufei spoke of. It was okay to let go, she suddenly realised. It was going to be okay to die, anything would be better than this. She didn't want to keep staring this monstrosity in the face.

A pair of guns appeared either side of her face, sliding past her in seemingly slow motion. When they went off, it looked like a bright supernova. The sound of them was deafening and she could only hear ringing. She felt an arm loop around her face, hiding her eyes. Suddenly her body was her own and she could breathe. Between swallowing as much air as she could, she screamed.

Two more shots, and she was dragged bodily away. It wasn't until she was bundled into the car and Wufei was there, shaking her, did she realise she was still screaming. Incoherent with fear, she grabbed on to him and buried her head in his chest. She felt his arms tighten around her, and then the ringing faded enough so she could hear him. "I've got you, I've got you, shhh, it's okay. Shh shh, it's okay-it's okay. I've got you, Riko, shh." His hand on her hair, stroking like she was a child. They rocked together until the fear subsided and she took another breath.

"Status?" She heard Heero ask roughly.

"Head wound, unknown severity." Wufei replied shortly, "Duo?"

"He's dazed but alright. Feels like Riko was targeted. I'll get the kit for you." She felt a hand on her shoulder that wasn't Wufei's. Raising her head slightly, she looked at Heero. His smile was small, and his expression was grim. "We've got you. It looks like you have a surface wound, we can easily treat that."

She nodded mutely, looking back up to Wufei. He had blood smeared on his chin and his chest. As if reading her mind, he smiled lopsidedly. "You have a head wound. You're bleeding."

Riko swallowed, looking at the blood and then back at him, unable to find the words to say without sounding like she was begging.

Wufei tilted his head; he understood what she was asking. "Of course you can. Blood washes off."

Riko closed her eyes gratefully and burst into tears as she buried her face back into his chest. In her mind, she saw her auntie screaming in the reflection of the puddle. She'd still been watching as, behind Naomi Matsumi, something else had darkened the bright blue sky and taken her away.

* * *

Duo couldn't quite summon the energy to raise his head when he realised someone was crouched down in front of him. He was sat on the pavement by the church, arms resting on raised knees while he dropped his head and breathed. He felt a hand rest gently on one of his and he raised his head then.

Quatre was crouched in front of him, pale faced under his combat helmet. Quatre tilted his head, "How are you doing?"

"Hah. My face's still attached so I guess I better be grateful." Duo smiled ruefully, he held up a finger weakly. "But we have got to go through some combat scenarios, and I'm definitely going to demand that every visit we spar a bit." He winced as he laughed, "All offence, but how the fuck did a suit get the drop on a preventer?"

"Hey, I'm a badass." Quatre snorted, and shrugged. "It was the quickest way I could think of to incapacitate you. I know Trowa can drop me, but I wasn't sure if Wufei would be able to tackle the thing by himself."

Duo nodded slightly, and then rolled his shoulders. He got up slowly to his feet, waving off Quatre's offer of assistance. He mentally ran through his body, checking it. Aside from a rapidly swelling shiner and a split lip, he seemed to be fine. Quatre tutted softly, "I'm sorry about the black eye."

It had happened so fast. Duo could barely remember thinking he should check on the nun before Quatre had punched him sharply in the nose, grabbed the back of his head to bounce his face off the side of the car. All thoughts of the nun had fled, as he lay on the ground dazed. He'd heard Wufei shouting for Riko.

There'd been three pairs of gunshots; the scuffle of feet. When the ringing in his ears started to fade, he'd got bearings and struggled to his feet. He had seen Trowa pinning Quatre to the ground; Quatre's face curiously blank, his body slowly relaxing. He saw Wufei dragging a screaming Riko toward the car. Suddenly realising he couldn't see Heero; he'd stumbled forward - only to find Heero standing on guard in front of the car, weapon drawn.

Heero had caught him in a brief hug before dragging him away to sit down on the kerb. Trowa had released Quatre, who had politely thanked Trowa and was now dusted himself off.

Duo shook his head, bringing himself back to now. Quatre was looking more concerned by Duo's daze. "I'm okay," Duo waved him off. "Just..." He tapped his head in a vague way, which Quatre nodded at. "How's Riko?"

"She's going to be okay. She should still be fairly operational, though clearly..." Quatre finished the sentence by indicating his eye.

"On it. Though maybe the Odd Numbers should get those shifts." Duo frowned and put his hands on his hips. "We appear to be susceptible."

"Hmm." Quatre agreed, he walked over to the car and opened the door. Inside, Trowa was cleaning Riko's wounds on the middle row of seats while Heero and Wufei were checking their weapons in the back.

Heero gave Duo a hard stare. Duo nodded at him. "I'm okay."

"Your eye. Your lip." Heero's jaw clenched for a moment, "These are… some of the wounds the future version of you had."

"Then we're getting closer to the end." Duo half-smiled, "Gonna be honest, this survival horror's a bit intense. Thought we were gonna see pirates, Yuy. I'm never supposed to be right…"

Heero looked concerned for a moment, before packing away the emotion. He picked up a helmet and passed it to Duo. "Helmet on."

"Yes, sir." Duo slipped it on, and moved to repack his hair into his vest.

Quatre climbed into the car in front of Riko, and twisted so he could see her. She was leaning against Wufei, who watched over her. Wufei gave him the briefest of nods, and Quatre gave him a look of thanks before talking to her. "Riko, we've got to go into the church now."

Her eyes widened for a moment before he reached out and touched her clenched hand.

"We're not leaving you behind, but that means I need you to be brave." He saw the question in Riko's eyes as they briefly slid in Wufei's direction and shook his head hard, "I need Wufei indoors, four of us isn't enough to provide complete cover."

Riko swallowed, glancing at Trowa.

He smiled regretfully, "I've patched you up. You're operational."

She looked down and then took a breath. Quatre recognised the pattern; Wufei often breathed like that. He felt relief as she pulled herself together and looked at him. "Okay."

He smiled as she used her fear and turned it into rage, her dark eyes were steady.

"Can I have my axe back?"

* * *

Crossing the graveyard took a matter of moments. Riko was at the centre of their formation and had been tasked with opening doors on Quatre's mark. Duo had quickly shown her how to angle her feet so she could balance the axe against her leg without dropping it when she moved. Wufei had checked her helmet one more time, his fingers and his dark eyes lingering on her. She hoped he understood her silent promise that later, she would thank him for this.

The angry red sky was darkening, night stealing across the silent town. The wind carried the scent of burning all around them. The group slipped into the church, tapping on their shoulder torches as they entered. Pews lay scattered away from the centre of the room, scorch marks indicating the aftermath of something explosive, although there wasn't any other damage to the room. The five pilots scanned the area, their weapons drawn. Riko watched Wufei intently, taking care to keep him in sight as her memory threatened her with darkness and oil. Swallowing hard, she opened her eyes and looked around.

There … at the destroyed alter… stood what remained of a woman.

What used to be electric blue hair hung limply in a tattered pony tail; Naomi Matsumi's face was pale and drawn. Her hands twitched every so often, and she seemed to be swaying.

"Auntie?" Riko called out, and would have walked forward but for Quatre's outstretched arm. The pilots carefully approached until Riko could see her auntie's face up close. Matsumi's dark eyes were dull and unseeing. Her normally golden skin tone looked ashen. She didn't even flinch when Quatre shone a bright torch at her.

"You have brought her. Good. You may leave." Naomi Matsumi spoke with a voice that was both hers and… not. Her dull dark eyes rolled in her head. "I have no need of you."

"Who are you?" Quatre stepped closer, holding his gun in a non-threatening manner. "You aren't Professor Matsumi, are you?"

"I am known by many names, but I am the distant star. You speak of my herald. It weakens as the one before it." Matsumi's head tilted, her face taking on an expression that could be seen as pity. "Such fragile things."

"Can you give her back to us?"

"No"

"She is ours."

"It is mine now. Give me the other of its blood."

"No."

Matsumi's expression turned to something that looked like mild frustration. She held up her arm, and Riko moved to throw herself and Wufei to the side as Matsumi swung her arm. The other pilots were pulled off their feet and flung across the church. Wufei quickly recovered and pulled Riko up. They ran behind a pillar, pausing only to get their bearings. They were hidden behind a pillar, with a reasonably clear path down the side wall of the church. In front of them were broken pews. "We've got to run!"

"What about-?"

"They'll figure it out!" Wufei grabbed her arm painfully, "It wants you!" He pulled her forward, and they made a run for the exit, scrabbling over the debris in their way. Through air that rippled oddly, Matsumi stepped out from behind the last pillar, raising her arm and sweeping it to the side.

Riko and Wufei were swept into the wall.

Riko opened her eyes to water, murky and black. They were inside something, completely underwater. What little light they had from their dying torches gave her the impression of a small enclosed space, barely big enough to stand in. A skull floated past before a crack opened up in the fabric of space and a hand reached out to grab her by her vest. Wufei moved quickly, bracing his feet against something metallic. Air gushed through the crack as water drained out. Riko was able to take a great gulp of air, while trying to undo her vest.

"Hold on!" Wufei shouted, "Above your head!"

Riko abandoned trying to undo her vest and scrabbled above her head, trying to find purchase on the slimy metal surfaces. She felt Wufei's leg buckle as he lost his balance; and heard her vest rip.

Her aunt's arm briefly let her go, sending both of them overbalanced but darted out before they could recover and grabbed Riko by the throat. Her head exploded with song. She saw a dark planet, a distant star—

Her aunt's body pulled her out of the crack.

Riko was thrown to the ground and looked up, coughing violently, in time to see the crack in the church wall begin to close. Brackish water sprayed out, drenching both her and Matsumi. The water slowed to a trickle and acquired a rusty stain before stopping entirely. Gunshots rang out, and a pair of strong hands grabbed her from behind. She saw her aunt stumble back, expressionless, as she held up her hand and the bullets bounced off the shining white of a force field. Her distraction was enough to enable Riko to get to her feet with Heero pulling her up.

"Wait, Wufei! What about Wufei?!" She called out, as Heero ran with her. The other pilots ran with them. When Riko fell behind, Duo dragged her by the arm. "What about Wufei?"

"It's after you!" Duo called over his shoulder, "He'll figure something out!"

"GIVE ME THE BLOOD!" The thing that inhabited Naomi Matsumi screamed as they ran to the car. "THE DISTANT STAR MUST RISE!"

* * *

Quatre was sitting on the bed waiting for her when Riko got out of the shower. He stood and offered her his hands. "We will go back for him, first thing tomorrow." He held Riko's hands tightly, the promise burning in his bright blue eyes. "Do you want me to carry down anything else?"

She glanced at the bed. Her bag was packed up alongside Wufei's. Riko shook her head. "No, just." She clenched her hands, "First thing. You promise?"

"Yes." He walked over to the bed and picked up Wufei's things, "Do you need anything else?"

"I…" She clenched her jaw, and ran a hand through her hair. "Just give me a moment to just—"

He touched her arm thoughtfully, "I'll be outside."

Riko nodded, and watched as Quatre left the room. Even though he closed the door gently, it still seemed to crack loudly in the empty room. Riko felt a headache blossom in her head, and she closed her eyes as she touched her forehead. When she opened her eyes, she was confused by how clean the room suddenly looked. She turned slowly, her stuff lay on the bed with Wufei's bag on the floor.

"I'm not dating any of them." Wufei said behind her.

She spun and walked over to sofa.

Wufei lay on the sofa, dressed as she'd seen him that first day. He looked terribly uncomfortable. She felt her headache grow worse, and she understood what this meant. She gripped the back of the sofa hard and must have alerted him to her. One dark eye opened, he looked tired.

Riko leaned over, "You didn't need to do this for me." She swallowed, regret closing her throat. "Thank you."

"Don't worry; we've all slept on worse surfaces." He closed his eye again; "Just try to get some sleep. There's no rhyme or reason to the time skips."

Riko felt a little like her heart was breaking. She couldn't walk away from him. Her mind's eye flashed with the look of horror she saw as she was ripped from his arms. She swallowed hard, when he opened both of his dark eyes, confused now. "Good night, Wufei."

He shrugged, and closed his eyes again. "Night, Riko."

She made herself to let go of the sofa, and forced herself to walk away. She closed her eyes for a moment, waiting. When she opened them again, she was back in the rotting hotel suite and Wufei was gone.

"First thing in the morning." She nodded, "I promise."

* * *

**Notes:** Thank you for being here. Good night Wufei.


	20. As the pain sweeps through

**Disclaimer**: hahahahahahaha… I'm so old. You know the score.

**Notes**: Really, it all kinda just goes wrong.

_**Song**__: David Bowie – As The World Falls Down_

_As the pain sweeps through,_

_Makes no sense for you_

_Every thrill is gone_

_Wasn't too much fun at all,_

_But I'll be there for you-ou-ou_

_As the world falls down._

* * *

**Eldritch Holiday**

By Doctor Megalomania

* * *

_Falling in love_

_As the world falls down_

_Makes no sense at all_

_Makes no sense to fall_

* * *

**Chapter 19 –** As the pain sweeps through

* * *

Duo woke up. His back was warm, and his feet tangled with Heero's. He reached backward, his hand brushing over Heero's hip. It seemed to trigger something in Heero, because he rolled over and spooned up behind Duo. Duo closed his eyes and breathed, as he felt Heero's arm slip around him and Heero's admittedly cold nose press up against his shoulder. It was everything.

Duo swallowed.

It was everything he'd ever wanted.

That was it, the world could end now. He smiled in the darkened room, only a sliver of light from the sun that had barely risen. Then his memory began to trickle back, he remembered pulling a hysterical Riko into the car, holding her down as they frantically drove away. He took a breath and closed his eyes, pressing his face into the pillow. Wufei was gone.

"Shh." Heero murmured sleepily. "It will be okay."

Duo opened his eyes and stared at the pillow. It could have been him, it could have been Heero. This moment could be the last time. His jaw clenched, memories of blood and ashes briefly exploding in his mind, forcing him up. He sat up, staring at the end of the bed. He turned slightly as he felt the covers shift behind him. Turning, Duo faced a sleepy Heero.

The softness that was in Heero's face; the care and the worry. It let him set aside the last time someone had looked at him with such love in their deep blue eyes. It helped him make his mind up. He was here now; hiding from this moment wasn't going to help anyone. It couldn't protect Heero.

"I love you." Duo said simply, holding a hand up to gently cup Heero's face.

Heero blinked slowly, "I love you too."

"I'm sorr—"

Heero moved forward and interrupted him with a kiss. Duo smiled into the kiss, understanding. He pushed Heero down onto the bed, and broke the kiss briefly. "Promise me," He leaned on an elbow and brushed Heero's messy hair lovingly. "You'll live. Even though I love you."

Heero's dark blue eyes were steady, "I can only promise to try." He reached up to thread his fingers into Duo's hair. "Can you promise me the same?"

Duo nodded slowly, "I can certainly try." He licked his lip, and glanced at his watch. "We got about 15 minutes before the others come for us. Not a lotta time."

Heero tugged on Duo's head, pulling him down for a kiss. His smile was regretful. "One day, I'll show you what I can do in fifteen minutes. But today..." His eyes flicked down to Duo's lips, his eyes unfocused, "Fifteen minutes of kissing you will be enough."

Duo traced his finger over Heero's forehead, "I'm gonna hold you to that, soldier."

* * *

Quatre waited for Riko to lock the bathroom door before he rapidly got dressed. They'd slept awkwardly last night, everyone agreeing that they'd leave the town if they couldn't find Wufei. When she wasn't up tapping away at Wufei's tablet, Riko had had nightmares and woke up this morning subdued. Trowa had held him in the night, partly because of their sleeping arrangement - Riko took one of the twin beds - and partly because Quatre had held him back.

Once she was dressed, they all entered the lift and made their way down towards the dining room. Clutching Wufei's tablet like a shield in one arm, Riko stood in front of Quatre and Trowa, closest to the door. She acted like her being the first out would help find Wufei faster. Quatre touched the back of her elbow, "We're going to do our best. But you need to prepare yourself—"

"Wufei said you'd taken leave of your company because you'd broken up." Riko said anxiously, folding her arms over Wufei's tablet as if she was uncomfortable. "I guess when this is all over you're going to go back."

"Wufei told you that?" Quatre blinked in surprise as the lift stopped at a floor that wasn't the one they wanted.

"Of course he did. Who else would tell me?" Riko moved nervously, punching the close door button when it became obvious nobody else was getting on. She tossed a distracted glance over her shoulder. "Well? Will you?"

"I haven't decided yet." He glanced at Trowa, who looked equally surprised.

"Huh." Riko replied. She seemed to think for a moment. "What about Pumpkin?"

Quatre frowned, his mind blank. "About what now?"

"Pumpkin is Wufei's cat." Trowa looked shocked, he shook his head, "Wufei told you about his cat?!"

The lift doors dinged as Riko nodded jerkily. "You're gonna take care of her. Right?"

"Of course—wait." Trowa's visible eye widened. "It's a her?"

"Wait, no. You're not gonna need to take care of her, right? Because, you're the Gundam Pilots and we're gonna get him back, right?" Riko turned before she slipped out the door. Quatre and Trowa followed her slowly for a moment, before Quatre shook his head and pulled Trowa back for a moment.

"I'm sorry, Wufei has a cat?"

"I think so." Trowa admitted, "I've only seen a picture because Sally was explaining why she looked like she'd been in a brawl."

Quatre looked scandalised, looking from Trowa to Riko who was waiting impatiently by the door, talking rapidly to Heero and Duo. "If Wufei has both a cat and a girlfriend and he didn't tell me before he died, I'm going to be so pissed I'm going to learn how to raise the fucking dead!"

Trowa couldn't help the laugh that escaped him as Quatre stomped over to join the others.

* * *

"It's like..." Riko paused, trying to find the words. The song had swiftly faded, but memory of the dark planet remained. "It's running from something and, while it was running, it crashed here." She sat back from the dinner table, "I mean... it was being chased but it arrived here, I don't think it meant to..." She frowned and shook her head, "All I got was that it needed something I know. It was like my auntie told it what she knew about me, and it saw something in those memories that it needs."

She glanced at Heero, who finished typing. His fingers hovered over his laptop for a moment. "It would be easier if we had some kind of point of reference..."

Riko nodded, "I tried drawing what I saw." She picked up Wufei's tablet and began tapping at the screen.

"Here." Heero began to reach over, "I know his code."

Ignoring him, Riko flipped the tablet over to show them a reasonably drawn image of a dark planet in the sky, outlined by the light of a star. "I tried to remember the constellations I saw, but there was just too much..." She turned the tablet to herself, shaking her head. "It's just so unlike anything I've ever seen, and I can't remember..." As the remaining pilots stared at her with stunned silence, she felt her nerve crumble and she hung her head in shame, "It's my fault, I should have ..."

"I'm sorry." Quatre's apologetic tone snapped her out of her thoughts. He was leaned over the table and gestured the tablet. "Is there a photo of Pumpkin on there?"

Riko blinked. "Well..." She quickly glanced at the screen in front of her. "Yes?"

Heero looked confused, "Why would Wufei keep a picture of pumpkins on his tablet?"

"It's his cat." Duo said matter-of-factly, "Hold up. Can we rewind here?" He pointed at Riko, "How do you know what Pumpkin is?"

"He showed me some photos of his cat."

"There's more than one photo of Pumpkin?" Trowa asked as he pointed at the tablet with annoyance, "I demand to see more pictures."

"Wufei has a cat?" Heero asked Duo plaintively.

"Ah, good, I'm not the only one finding out that Wufei has a cat." Quatre replied waspishly, "Yes. Apparently."

Trowa scoffed at Heero, "Haven't you ever wondered why Sally always looks like she's put her hand in a blender when Wufei gets back from solos?"

Heero's narrowed eyes and confused expression clearly communicated that he had not. Duo tapped the table. "Hang on," He pointed at Trowa, "You've seen _ONE _photo? Whoa, wait. Wait, wait, wait." He held up a hand to stop himself, "Let's not get distracted here!"

"I agree!" Riko said desperately, putting the tablet down. "Wufei is—"

"So dead." Quatre tapped the table impatiently, "I'm going to kill him! Why didn't he tell me he had a cat?"

"Probably for the same reason Noin regretted telling you she was pregnant." Duo cocked his head, his expression snarky, "Wufei only has one small apartment and you would just keep buying things."

"I can't help it! I kept seeing things I thought would be good for the baby! Cats are different!" Quatre looked at Trowa, his expression turning hopeful, "Do you think he's got a scratch post? I saw this—"

"WUFEI'S STILL MISSING, BOYS!" Riko roared as she stood. She looked at them, her eyes brimming with hot, angry tears. "How can you...?" She drew a ragged breath and slumped down into her seat. "How do you do...this? He might be hurt… or… or dead."

"Oh no, honey." Duo said, leaning forward. "If Wufei was dead, he'd be here, polter-fucking-geist-ing the fuck out of me for getting him fucking dead before his time." He slapped the table twice and then stood up, "But now you're angry, not nervous. Now we can go." He gave her a saucy wink and made finger guns at her. Trowa and Quatre smiled at her as they both got up and picked up their coats. Riko looked at Heero.

"How the fuck do you not go insane?"

Heero snapped his laptop shut, narrowed his eyes as he thought for a moment and drew a breath, opening his mouth to reply.

"It's a rhetorical, Heero!" Duo called back. "Let's go!"

Heero closed his mouth and looked at Riko, shrugging. Riko got up and followed him. "I do have actual questions."

"I'll answer them in the car, if you like."

Riko hugged Wufei's tablet like it would protect her. "Uh huh. Yeah, you will."

* * *

Heero tightened the strap on Riko's helmet. She had on Duo's vest, and Quatre's helmet. She gazed at him with a confused look for so long he paused and took a step back. "What's wrong?"

"Just..." She paused for a moment, and pressed her fingers against her forehead, "How are you not dead?"

"I thought we'd been through this." He tilted his head, "Mostly a combination of –"

"No, no, you answered but I... I just can't wrap my head around how many times you should be dead, and yet, you're..." She punched his shoulder. Heero was reasonably impressed with the strength in her punch. "You're not." She looked slightly relieved, "So… Wufei might not be dead."

"We are extraordinarily lucky." Heero tipped his head, as he stared leading her to join the others, "Stay close."

This time as they entered the church, Matsumi was stood facing away. Her electric blue hair was fading to a dusty navy. Her skin sagged. She turned and stared at them. "You return. Give me the blood." She held out a hand, and the pilots snapped up their guns. Heero and Quatre stepped forward, their guns pointing at her head. Heero kept pace with Quatre, as the other man approached.

"You took one of ours." Quatre gestured to Duo and Trowa to fan out. He looked at her defiantly. "We came to get him back."

Duo and Trowa broke off the formation and walked over to the wall where they'd last seen Wufei. Matsumi watched them with dull dark eyes.

"Give me the blood of this herald." She turned her head back to Riko. "You have the knowledge; know the science of this world. You can help me."

"If I do—"

"Riko." Warningly, Quatre held out a hand to stop her. "Don't."

Riko stared at the hand and then shook her head, "If I do, will you save him?"

Matsumi's head tilted. "I don't need to. He's not here."

"Where is he?" Quatre demanded, reaching out to grab Riko by the arm. "Where did you send him?"

"You fragile little things." Matsumi took a step forward, reaching out with a bony hand. "You cannot comprehend that I have already saved him from this accursed rock... I am—"

Heero took a shot at her while Quatre dragged Riko backward. To the side of the church, both Duo and Trowa started moving back toward the formation again. Rage rippled over Matsumi's face, and she threw her arms forward. The motion blew both Quatre and Heero off their feet into the air. Behind them, the air shimmered and ripped.

Trowa began firing at Matsumi who walked forward, grasping Riko by the throat. Her eyes, nostrils, mouth began to glow as she puked up a light of many different shimmering colours. Duo stooped to pick up a plank and tried to hit her with it. The force field that engulfed both Matsumi and Riko blew him back. For a moment, he saw stars from a field on a dark planet. Before him stood a nun bent in all the wrong places.

He shook his head, and his vision cleared. He was lying on the ground and couldn't find strength to stand. Putting a hand to the side of his head, he realised woozily that he was bleeding and his helmet had been ripped off.

Riko now stood holding Matsumi by the neck. "You've served me well." She said in a voice that was not her own. She gestured in a broad sweep and the air shimmered and ripped again. "Be free and die in your own way." Riko shoved Matsumi thought the rip and turned towards Trowa. The man was still single-mindedly emptying his clip.

Riko tilted her head, and walked towards him.

The bullets that he'd been firing were caught in the force field protecting her and melted to form a spiked molten halo around her sunset-coloured hair. She raised a hand piously, holding it in a stop motion in front of Trowa's face. Duo watched as Trowa's face slackened, and Riko's hair flared around her head like living fire. She drew something from him, a substance that drained out of his body and glowed with brilliant light. Flinging a hand behind her, a glass vial flew across and she trapped the substance in it. The vial floated away, the brilliance within dimming and flickering into a dull light.

As she turned away, Trowa's arms dropped to his side and he was left expressionless.

Duo tried to find the strength to stand, to raise his gun as she walked closer. He felt the shimmering heat from her. As her hand appeared in front of his face, he realised it was acceptable. Everything was fine. He felt it all drain away; his anger, his fear, his hate of this creature, his hope, his love...

It drained everything away from him and he watched, only vaguely curious, as Riko reached for another vial and trapped it all.

Riko tilted her head and walked away. "You too will also be of use."

Duo blinked and, despite knowing the head wound needed attention, got up. Trowa gazed at him blankly, and he returned the look. He was empty. Duo looked around and saw that the church was shaking. Riko stood facing the altar, her hands extended. The air shimmered and the altar moved, changing its shape. Above them, the church rocked on its very foundations, the roof peeling away as fire ripped at it. All around them, the church fell apart as it was destroyed in an immense inferno. As the walls crumbled, Duo could see out into the town. Beyond the burning remnants of the door, he noticed Heero and Quatre by the car. They were crouched over the body of Professor Matsumi.

He reached out and touched Trowa's elbow to get his attention. He pointed listlessly towards the others.

Trowa turned and watched as the immense fiery destruction that was destroying the church was engulfing the town. It took Matsumi, Quatre and Heero along with their car. Nothing remained; everything burned in the wake of the explosion at the church.

"That's a shame." Trowa said faintly. "I think we were going to get back together."

"Should I be crying?" Duo looked at Trowa, his face feeling numb. "This seems like something I should be upset about." He looked at his hands, they were cold. He looked at Riko. "What did you do to us?"

"The one you call Wufei. He told this herald of the science you both know." She turned with a look of greedy delight on her face. "You have the science I have been looking for. You two and this herald." She turned away again, raising her hands. "Come now. You have work to do."

Around them the air shimmered and changed.

"You will see the distant star rise."


	21. No Colours Anymore

**Disclaimer**: hahahahahahaha… I'm so old. You know the score.

**Notes**: Duo and Trowa try to fix things.

_**Song**__: Ciara – Paint it black_

* * *

_I see a red door and I want it painted black  
No colours anymore I want them to turn black  
I see the girls walk by dressed in their summer clothes  
I have to turn my head until my darkness goes_

_I see a line of cars and they're all painted black  
With flowers and my love both never to come back  
I see people turn their heads and quickly look away_

* * *

**Eldritch Holiday**

By Doctor Megalomania

* * *

_Maybe then I'll fade away and not have to face the facts  
It's not easy facin' up, when your whole world is black_

* * *

**Chapter 20** – No colours anymore

* * *

The mobile suit was vast; its engine core was many times the size of Wing Zero. It was an impossible machine. Duo and Trowa stared down at the machine blankly. Between them, Riko stood. Her hands dropped from where she was holding them, and she turned to face the two.

She touched Duo's forehead and then Trowa's as if she was taking their temperature. She'd done it several times, and every time afterward the mobile suit made slightly more sense. The hanger bay grew dimmer; the details did not seem to matter so much as the pilots began to understand the engine before them. The distant star's manipulation of their senses was helping them to see the engine in a way they could work with.

Hours had passed, and Duo began to sway with the effort of remaining standing.

The thing inside Riko made a noise that could have been an impatient tut. It placed both of Riko's hands either side of Duo's head and the air grew warm around his head. The pain from the head wound lessened and the bleeding was staunched. Riko's head tilted. "You are so fragile." She touched his forehead and then returned to her task.

"We're only human." Trowa observed, "We will die." He looked at Duo. "How bad is it?"

"It doesn't hurt now." Duo replied, "I have a headache, and my vision is not great. Perhaps I have a concussion."

"I had a scientist of the flesh once." The thing inside Riko said, "She could not fix the machine. She fixed the bodies of the others who came after. She could not fix herself." It turned Riko's body to them, "You will fix the machine. You have the knowledge and the ability to think in alternative methods. Then you can fix each other."

"Why?" Trowa looked at Riko. He gestured behind him, "You have destroyed everything that mattered to us, and you have even taken the emotions from us that made it matter. You will kill us anyway; helping you is pointless."

"I will not choose your death. I will free you." Riko made a circular gesture, "And you may die in your own way." She turned away from them, and walked towards the power core of the massive mobile suit. She reached out a hand to rest it on the darkened core. Her face was reflected in the glass. "I will be free from this accursed rock. I will go back and roam the spaces between. I will be free and I will die in my own way."

She turned back to them.

"Your will is strong. I admire that. The herald too is strong in her own way. I command you to work."

Duo and Trowa looked at each other. Duo shrugged. "No."

"You have the science I need."

"You've taken it all from us," Trowa replied. "There's no reason for us to help you."

"I will free you." Riko stepped forward, "Free you as I have the other parasites. This one you call Wufei, and the others. I will free you as I have freed my last herald. Your insignificant freedom." She clenched a fist in front of them. "I could destroy this all. I will instead grant you a ..." The thing inside Riko seemed to lose track of what it was saying. It loosened Riko's fist and dropped it down, "I will give you a promise. Ask one thing of me, and you will have it."

"Give me back my friends." Duo said, "They're our family."

"I cannot give you what I do not have." The thing inside Riko spread its hands, "I can only give you what is in my possession now."

Trowa looked at Duo for a long time before nodding slowly. "Make him unable to kill himself when this is all done." Duo gazed at Trowa, expression blank before nodding thoughtfully.

"I want the same thing… make Trowa unable to kill himself when this is all done." Duo stared blankly at Trowa, "We are all the family we have left."

Trowa tilted his head toward Duo, "I have no doubt that once our feelings are back, we will resent this."

"Oh most certainly," Duo nodded, "but it makes sense – the others wouldn't want us to die. We are Gundam Pilots… The world still needs protecting."

They looked at the monstrosity inside Riko. Her expression was confused. "Is that all?"

"What else is there to ask for?" Trowa asked faintly. "You cannot give us back the rest, so let us protect what's left."

"Will you work?"

"Will we have our feelings back afterwards?"

The thing inside Riko thought for a moment, and made a gesture. The two vials of strange liquid floated to her and orbited her hand. She seemed to stare at them. "The distractions. Yes. I will have no need for them after this. What tools you need will be provided. You need only think of them. Go and perform your science."

She walked away from them, walking down a gangplank away from the massive machine. Duo and Trowa looked at the dark machine and shrugged at each other as they bent to their work.

How many hours they worked, how many days they worked, neither Trowa nor Duo could comprehend. There was no indication of day or night, if they were hungry or tired, they simply did not care enough to stop. The machine was relatively easy to fix. Duo almost passed out at one point, and Riko came closer. She brought a bowl of water and left it for them. Trowa looked up as she walked away, watching as she seemed to tilt her head, almost as if listening to something.

The thing inside Riko seemed to mutter, "You fragile little things."

It returned to the engine and reached in; taking what looked to Trowa like an oddly augmented battery with a small circuit board attached. Its cables writhed as if alive and in pain to be separated from the suit. Riko paused and looked at him directly.

"How is it that you survive anything?" It seemed to ask, reaching forward and gently pushing Trowa away. He stumbled backwards and looked at his hands, his palms were burned. The skin was red and raw and bleeding. Riko passed her hand over his. She looked into the engine and the part he had been working on shifted away. "You have done enough. I can fix that now. Go elsewhere and fix."

She picked up the living part and walked away slightly.

Flexing his fingers, he glanced at Duo who continued to work, his focus was completely on the task in front of him. Trowa looked at Riko. She raised a hand and the air in front of her shimmered and ripped. She thrust the living part through and moved her arm around. There was a brief moment where something on the other side pulled her forwards and the top half of Riko's body disappeared into the shimmer.

Trowa shook his head and returned his attention to the machine.

"I think we're almost finished." Duo's voice was low.

"Yes, I agree."

"What will we do next?"

"I think the distant star will leave." Trowa thought for a moment, "And then we will leave. I will go to Wufei's place and pick up the cat. You can break the news to Rashid and to Relena. I will take the Preventers."

"That's an appropriate plan." Duo considered a part as the cables from it started to wrap around his wrist, nosing and burrowing for a vein. "Do you think this is really a machine?"

"No."

"Me either." Duo sighed slightly. "We're likely going to be very traumatised by this. Do you think perhaps we should forgo our emotions?"

"I admit this does mean we are hyper focused and are able to work intensely." Trowa nodded, pushing a transistor into place. "But I suspect that this will not be considered a life by others." He paused for a moment, confused when another transistor he had been positioning burst in his hand like an egg. He reached behind him and picked up a replacement. "I think Quatre would want me to have my feelings back. I think he would like to be mourned."

"I am not certain what my reaction to Heero's death will be."

"Yes." Trowa went silent for a long moment. "More light?"

"Please."

Later – was it hours? Days? – Duo straightened and looked up when he heard a sound. Around him from the open engine, sparks floated slowly like a firefly. He reached up a hand to touch one, but was gently stopped by Riko. The thing inside her gestured at them, walking them away from the engine. Behind them the illusion faded, and Duo caught sight of a living black rock move and shift. He looked down at himself, splattered with dark liquid.

"You have done what none could do for two hundred years." The thing inside Riko seemed impressed, joyful. "If I had known you were what I needed…" She raised a hand, and the two vials appeared. They floated over to Duo and Trowa, who grabbed them out of the air. Trowa's hands were burned; Duo's shoulder was sodden with blood. They glanced at each other, and then at the thing inside Riko. Behind them the engine made another noise, louder this time. More sparks floated past.

Duo watched them for a long moment before looking at the thing inside Riko. "We're taking Riko. Wufei would not be pleased if we left her behind."

The thing tilted Riko's head, its expression curious. "You are keen to keep the herald." It seemed to think. "I do not need it. It has shown me the stars I need to navigate by. You can have it."

"Take us back to the hotel." Trowa nodded slowly, looking down at his hands. The burns were superficial and healing. "We need to return there."

"You wish to go back to the splice's lair?" The thing seemed bemused. "It has fed off you for days." The thing in Riko's body looked away, as if listening to something far away. It raised a hand and reached through the shimmering rip in the air. When it brought her hand back through, it held something misshapen and bloody. Distantly, Duo thought it looked like the nun's head.

"I will bless you thrice over." The thing in Riko's body was pleased. "I will rid you of your curse. I will weaken the splice. I will return you to its lair."

Duo asked, "What is that?"

"This?" The thing inside Riko laughed, "Your curse. An insect. It crawls over life, drinking the blood. Harmless but annoying." It tossed the head to the engine. Neither pilot reacted to the sickening crunching sounds behind them.

"And the splice?" Duo persisted, "What is that?"

The thing inside Riko seemed less pleased. "What does it matter? A parasite, below me. A predator that feeds off you. I have not the time to destroy it. I have weakened it instead. Are you not grateful to me?"

The engine made a louder noise, making the air reverberate behind them.

"What have we got to be grateful for?" Trowa asked simply, "You left us alive and took everything we've ever had from us."

For a moment, the thing inside Riko seemed to look inward. It nodded and then made an expansive gesture, "You cannot comprehend. You fragile little things. Tell all you have been blessed by the distant star." It made a circular gesture with her hands. "I free you now. Go be free and die in your own way."

Riko's head tipped back and she opened her mouth in a scream that was as many colours as it was musical notes.

The unfathomable light was so bright.

* * *

Duo blinked.

And he was back in the hotel. He was stood by the bed, his hands folding a shirt. He looked down and realised he was partway through packing Heero's bag. There was a rumble of thunder and he put the shirt down. He walked towards the bathroom and took the chance to wash his hands. Looking up, he stared at himself in the mirror. He was wet. He was cold. He could feel it now. The pain in his head, the pain in his heart. It was sharp, cutting him deeply. His feelings came back, blossoming like a deadly flower in his chest. He stared at his reflection, watching as the Duo in the mirror fell apart.

* * *

Trowa slowly lowered his hands down from his face.

They were bandaged. He looked at them; he'd done it. He recognised his own first aid bandage technique. Looking around he found himself in his hotel room. On Quatre's bed, both of their bags were neatly packed. Behind him, there was a rumble of thunder and he turned to look at the window. Outside, the rain fell. It fell like it hated this damned earth, and Trowa understood then what he was feeling. Everything.

Rage at Duo.

Sorrow for Wufei.

Pity for Heero.

Regret for Quatre.

It was the regret that choked him, making him stumble until he was sat on the edge of his bed, sobbing. He hadn't cried this like for years. The last time had been the first time he had seen Quatre after they had broken up. When the realisation that he would never have Quatre's love again had come crashing in, that he had broken up with Quatre in the hope of finding freedom, and that freedom was not what he had wanted. He had sobbed like this that night.

The tears blurred his vision and made him wish he had not asked for Duo's life. The price of having to keep his own was too much.

Someone cleared their throat awkwardly.

Trowa's eyes shot open and he slowly looked up, unsure if he'd heard the familiar noise.

Quatre stood before him, wrapped in a towel, freshly showered.

Hope was extinguished as soon as he recognised where Quatre was stood. He looked around the darkened room. Quatre didn't quite seem completely here. He glanced at the door, then rose from the bed and moved closer to Quatre, wondering how long he had.

It only took another flash of lightning for him to make up his mind.

He didn't care.

"Of course. This is why." He raised a hand to push his hair away, to really look at Quatre. "You knew this would happen." He realised sadly. "You knew we'd—"

Sharp pain stabbed at his mind, and he felt momentarily sick. He could see Quatre felt the same.

He gave up that train of thought, "Of course."

* * *

Duo found the gun Heero had hidden in the toilet cistern, and stared at it for a long time. It was oddly weighted but it was all he needed. All their other weapons were in the car. He walked to the window in the bedroom and stared out. The rain was driving hard, and the storm was getting worse. Glancing at the billboard, he saw that it was burned. It might have been the rain, but it seemed to Duo that it was healing. Whatever it was, it was recovering from whatever the distant star had done to it. He looked around the ruins of the town. Where the church had been, a pillar of light now struck the sky, so many different colours. It looked as if a gigantic laser beam was shooting into the sky. He was briefly reminded of the moment Heero saved the earth.

He tried to raise the gun, and found himself unable to do it. The tears came then. He bought his other hand up to his face and cried. Whatever the distant star had done to him, he couldn't just kill himself.

"Come on, come on." He said to himself, promising himself that he could be quicker than this distant star's magic. It worked, and he managed to get the gun against his temple.

"Duo."

He turned, Heero was there. Dark blue eyes wide, one hand reaching for him.

"You made it! I'm sorry… I thought you—" Duo stopped himself, realising that this wasn't his Heero. "Oh… you're not…"

Not the Heero who'd told him about this moment.

Not the Heero who'd lain in bed with him, making soft promises as they touched each other.

Duo stumbled back. Hit the floor hard and scrabbled away from this Heero.

"Oh no, this is…"

The past. A Heero untouched by his curse.

"This isn't…"

The Heero in front of him, a dream, a nightmare. Blessed before being cursed by him.

"No!" He couldn't help but wail when Heero took a step forward. "Don't touch me!" He crumpled with the weight of his guilt. Ashes and blood, Sister Helen's dark eyes going blank as her soul left. All because of him.

"I'm sorry! I shouldn't have loved you!"

Solo's dark blue eyes closing for the last time.

"I… I shouldn't have loved you!"

Father Maxwell crushed beneath the church he'd loved.

"I killed you!"

Heero engulfed in flames.

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!"

"No."

Duo stilled, Heero's voice cutting through his anguish like a lifeline.

"I… I need you. You… make me so… so happy. I feel so…"

Duo stared at the dirty carpet. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Heero's feet come closer. He could see the gun. He could feel the thing that the distant star had put in his mind. Ashes and blood covered the hidden command.

"I'm going to tell you… I thought I hadn't found the words yet, but…"

Duo felt the hidden command begin to strain.

"Yes… love. I love you."

The distant star's hidden command broke. It slipped away like Sister Helen's hand slipped away from his cheek. He was free.

"Please don't—"

Duo picked up the gun, and smiled hopefully at Heero. Hoping he'd understood the freedom he'd given Duo even after death. "Everyone who loves me dies." He felt his freedom and knew he could pull the trigger. Heero had thought this terrible; he didn't know that this had been wonderful.

"See you soon, lover."

He pulled the trigger.

* * *

Riko woke up on the bed she'd shared with Wufei. She stared at the ceiling, looking at the cracks. She wanted to vomit, scream, cry and laugh at the same time. She patiently folded her hands over her stomach and waited for the feelings to pass. When she felt up to it, she got up and looked around the room. There was nothing of Wufei's here. Her bag was by the end of the bed, packed and ready. She stared at it, knowing distantly when she'd packed but unable to connect the action to herself. The time between leaving the church and arriving at the hotel was even fuzzier than the time the distant star had been in her. She got up, pulled on her coat and pulled on her rucksack. Tightened the straps.

Looked around the room once and then walked out.

In front of her, Trowa's door was slightly open. She knocked on it once and opened the door without waiting for him to answer. He was knelt on the floor, staring into space. Riko walked toward him slowly. "I thought you'd have recovered by now." She said, as much to herself as him. "I need you guys to wake up. It's getting creepy." She rolled her shoulders uncomfortably, "And late. We need to go."

"Go where?" Trowa said faintly, looking up at her with reddened eyes.

She sighed with relief, "You are awake then."

"Yes." He got up, staring for a moment at the spot in front of him. "How did we get here?"

"We walked." Riko shrugged. "It didn't exactly help once it shoved us out the door." She made a familiar circular gesture, "Be free and all that." She crouched down and picked up the discarded weapon. She handed it to Trowa. "The splice. The thing in the billboard. We need to leave soon. Before it heals from what the distant star did to it."

"What does it do?" Trowa said, uninterested. He stared at the gun for a long hard moment, before packing it away into his bag.

Riko shifted nervously from one foot to another. "Feeds off us. The distant star didn't really explain what that meant. It just... feeds off us." She motioned around the room, "The hotel is kinda like its larder. It's where the distant star kept its scientists when it didn't need them. The splice just came to where there was food." She looked queasy for a moment, "It didn't … the distant star didn't understand… the people it kept here… they didn't have food, the splice drove them mad…" She swallowed hard, "They ate each other when they ran out of food."

Trowa gave her an odd look then, one of bemusement. "Of course they did. Cannibals…" He bowed his head for a moment, before muttering. "You were right, Quatre Winner…"

"Huh?"

"Nothing." He picked up his things, picked up Quatre's things and nodded at her. "I'm ready. Let's get Duo."

Duo's door was closed. From down the corridor, they could hear him wailing and shouting. Riko looked at Trowa apprehensively. Trowa paused at the door and dropped the bags. He pressed an ear against the door, listening with his eyes closed. Duo went abruptly quiet. Trowa pulled away from the door to look at Riko just as Duo let out a fresh howl of pain.

It shocked Trowa enough to make him slam into the room.

They ran in and found Duo collapsed on the floor like a puppet with cut strings. A gun lay pulled apart in front of him and Duo looked like he was praying, his forehead pressed desperately against his laced hands. Trowa stared at the weapon; he frowned as he noticed that even before it had been pulled apart the magazine had been incorrectly loaded. He picked it up, confused. The weapon would never have been able to fire anything. Duo drew a hard breath. Dropping the useless magazine, Trowa knelt down next to Duo and touched him, "It's going to be okay."

Duo snorted wetly. Cleared his throat. Rolled his shoulders, and looked up with a watery grin. "Yeah. Yeah, it is. Heero-fucking-Yuy. Sorry, lost it for a moment there." He swallowed and opened a hand to Trowa, passing over something in their hand shake in exchange for the useless magazine. He turned his attention to the gun on the floor and started putting it back together.

Trowa frowned and looked at the thing in his hand; Riko could only see that it was a small balled-up paper. Trowa carefully unscrewed the paper and read the finger-length note. He smiled bitterly and carefully folded the paper back up.

Duo finished with the gun and got up, walking over to the bed and dropping it in the bag he hadn't finished packing. Riko moved to help him, gently folding things and handing them to him. She glanced at Trowa, who simply tucked the tiny paper into Duo's bag.

Duo caught her look, and reached out to pull her into a hug. "Don't worry about it, honey. We got you."

Riko felt her throat close up. "I'm so sorry. I don't know where it took them. I'm so sorry, I should have—"

"Don't be." He squeezed her and then took a step back. His strangely-coloured eyes shone with tears, but he smiled broadly. "We're gonna go back."

"Hell yeah." Trowa said roughly behind him, focused on packing.

"We're gonna regroup."

Trowa picked up a bag and slung it over his shoulder, his expression dour. "Preach it, brother."

"We're gonna come back with the full force of - not only the Preventers – the strongest force of good in the universe..." Duo paused dramatically, "We're gonna tell _Relena_ that _Heero _is missing."

Trowa held up a hand, and shook it. "Tes-ti-fy."

"And then we're gonna find them. Wufei and your aunt as well." He glanced at Trowa, holding up a fist. "Oorah."

"Oorah." Trowa fist-bumped him and then walked past Riko, slapping her gently on the shoulder. "Let's go."

Duo picked up Heero's bags and slung them over his shoulder. He took a moment to look at the bed, and roughly ran his sleeve over his face. He looked at Riko, unsteady on his feet but looking ready. She tilted her head.

"What was on the note?"

Trowa snorted from the door, "Same thing that Heero always says when Duo has a stupid idea."

She glanced at Trowa, and then at Duo who walked past her to join Trowa. He paused before he left the room, and tossed a bright grin at her. "No fucking way, idiot."

Riko looked horrified. "Wait—were those his last words to you?"

"Nah." Duo chuckled, "Those would never be his last words to me. The Yuy Theorem. That's how I know he's out there somewhere. C'mon Riko, let's get out of here." He glanced at Trowa as he started walking. "I saw some cars we can probably steal; reckon they're in any condition to drive?"

* * *

It took six stolen cars, but they eventually crossed over the county line and left Happiness and its storm behind. Once they hit the truck stop where they'd met Riko the first time, they had to hitchhike. While Trowa negotiated the next ride, Duo took the chance to grab a few quiet minutes with the truck stop owner's telephone. Punching in a number he'd memorized, he heard the call connect and go straight to the voicemail message.

"The person you have called…" The computerised voice paused for Heero to speak. "When do I speak? What? Now?" The computerised voice took over, "Cannot come to the phone right now, please leave a message."

Duo swallowed hard. "Hey. It's me. I'm coming back for you, bud. I fuckin' love you. So this ain't it." He hung up and stared hard at the phone. He punched the table and rung again.

"The person you have called…" The computerised voice paused for Heero to speak. "When do I speak? What? Now?" The computerised voice took over, "Cannot come to the phone right now, please leave a message."

Duo smiled bitterly. "Yeah, I rung up again to listen to your voice. Shut the hell up." Duo hung up again, and stared hard at the phone. He took a moment to touch the crucifix at his throat. Straightened his shoulders. Nodded once to the owner, and walked away.

They arrived at the airport, worse for wear but glad to be somewhere with some kind of civilisation. While Duo bought tickets home, Trowa and Riko freshened up in the bathrooms. While Duo washed up, Trowa took their luggage and checked it in – showing his credentials to security to pass their weapons through. They got through security and found a quiet café in the departure lounge. They ate a light meal silently, and then proceeded to their boarding gate. By the time they were able to get in line for the flight, they were feeling a little more human.

Riko smiled when Duo got the double take from the attendant. "Are you-?"

"I am."

The poor man looked over the moon. He glanced around quickly, and brought out his phone. "Oh my god, can I get a photo?"

Duo smiled tightly and tapped the sign that said 'No photography', he snorted. "Maybe on the plane?"

"Oh… Yes!" The attendant beamed, "Thank you sir!"

Riko looked over her shoulder as they walked the boarding gate. "He didn't recognise Trowa?"

"Nobody ever recognises me." Trowa snorted, "I don't have stupid hair."

Riko stared at him for a moment, before glancing at Duo.

Duo scoffed, "Yes you do. We all have stupid hair." He tapped Riko on the arm, "This guy, right? Used to wear a clown mask on the side of his face not covered by hair."

"How did you …" Riko frowned, searching for the right word as she stepped onto the plane. "Wait, how did you see?"

"There was a hole cut into the mask." Trowa said dourly, walking to their seats. Duo had managed to get a row.

Duo leaned into Riko as he put his carry on into the hold above the seats. "There was no hole."

Riko laughed as she passed Trowa and went to sit by the window. The flight was uneventful. After taking a photo with the flight attendant, Duo settled into the middle seat and promptly fell asleep; Trowa slouched down where he was and folded his arms. Riko looked out the window and watched as the land below them passed. She let her mind wander, and for a moment, she dreamed.

A memory of Wufei came to her, in a dark place. Dark eyes filled with rage. His fingers tight on her chin.

She gasped as she woke up.

Beside her, Duo stirred and Trowa reached past him to touch her hand. "Are you okay?" He said in a low voice. "You were dreaming."

"I…" She swallowed hard, "Just. Wufei. I keep thinking about the last time I saw him… but—" She closed her eyes and shook her head hard, "He wasn't angry when I left him. I keep seeing him so angry."

"How could you tell?" One of Duo's eyes opened slightly and he inclined his head toward her, "He always looks angry."

Riko let her head fall forward for a moment, breathing. When she raised her head, she looked at Duo searchingly. "You seem pretty damn sure they're still alive."

He nodded, staring at the headrest in front of him. "Gotta be. Heero promised he'd haunt me."

"Hah." Trowa said, slouching comfortably in his seat. "Zechs owes me fifty dollars."

Duo looked at him, "Why does he owe you money?"

"You're totally boning each other." He said in a bored tone, "I knew it."

"You did not. I didn't even know it."

Trowa side eyed him hard, "Yeah but…"

"Yeah, but what?"

Trowa shook his head, "Duo. You didn't notice that the only pizza Heero would buy was always your favourite pizza. So, yeah, I'm not exactly surprised you didn't know."

"I resent that." Duo held up a middle finger, "Asshole."

"Good. You should, you're stupid."

They stared at each other until Riko made a soft noise, "Huh."

"What?" Duo glanced at her.

She shrugged, "No. Just Wufei said you were too much like brothers." She smiled knowingly as they both shared a confused look.

* * *

The queues for passport control were long. Duo pulled out his phone and looked at it despondently. It wasn't charging and it wasn't on. All their electronics were fried in different ways. "Guess we gotta go find a phone."

Getting through passport control was easy; waiting for their luggage was a bit more difficult but, eventually, they piled up a trolley with their things, and moved on through customs. As they exited arrivals, they paused in the immense airport. Duo adjusted his holdall and touched Riko's shoulder. "We're gonna go straight to Preventers central from here. Gotta get the troops." He glanced at Trowa, "Man. Une's gonna rip me a new one."

"Uh. She might have come to greet us."

Duo looked at Trowa who was staring off into the distance. He pointed, and Duo turned to look. Parting the many other travellers was a large group of armed preventers, General Une and—

"Oh shit." Duo swore, wincing. "Is that Relena?"

Trowa adjusted his holdall before pushing the trolley forward. "Yup."

"Oooo." Duo slipped an arm into Riko's, "I am not ready to tell her Heero's missing." He pulled Riko forward with him, "I was kinda hoping to be able to put on some combat gear first…" He raised a hand and waved, "Oh well, gotta face the music, I guess!"

* * *

Notes: We come to the end of the story. I'm really glad you're still here with me.


	22. Gathered all my strength

**Disclaimer**: hahahahahahaha… I'm so old. You know the score.

**Notes**: Heero and Quatre get angry about it.

_**Song**__: Rhianna – Sledgehammer_

* * *

_Yeah I hit a wall, I prayed that I would make it through, make it through  
I can't survive a life that's without you, that's without you, yeah  
And I will rise up from the ashes now, the ashes now  
Oh, the sparrow flies with just the crumbs of loving spilled, yeah_

* * *

**Eldritch Holiday**

By Doctor Megalomania

* * *

_I was bracing for the pain and then I let it go  
I gathered all my strength and I found myself whole_

* * *

**Chapter 21** – Gathered all my strength

* * *

"Where is he?" Quatre demanded, reaching out to grab Riko by the arm, trying to pull her away from her aunt. "Where did you send him?"

"You fragile little things." Matsumi took a step forward, reaching out with a bony hand. "You cannot comprehend that I have already saved him from this accursed rock... I am—"

Heero took a shot at her, while Quatre dragged Riko backward. Out of the corner of his eye, Heero could see both Duo and Trowa moving back into the formation again. Rage rippled over Matsumi's face, and she threw her arms forward. The motion blew Quatre and Heero off their feet into the air. Around them, the air shimmered and ripped.

There was a split second where nothing made sense, but then the ground hit him pretty hard. Heero took a moment, assessing the damage. He could feel his shoulder; his dominant hand would be hard to lift – nothing broken, just bruised. His combat helmet had cushioned the blow, as had most of his armour. Beside him, he felt Quatre move. Opening his eyes, he looked at Quatre. Quatre was sat up, crossed-legged and looking very confused. He was bleeding under his blonde hair but otherwise looked alert.

Heero glanced at the sky above them; the sky was a confusingly calm blue. After so long in the town with the oppressive hateful orange sky, it was so disorientating to see a normal colour so vast above them. Taking a breath, Heero sat up and looked around. They were on the street outside the church but … everything was destroyed. Behind them, the car was the only thing that wasn't in an advanced state of ruin. Quatre struggled to his feet, dipping briefly to his knees. "I'm dizzy." He held out a hand to Heero, "Probably hit my head harder than I thought."

"Hn." Heero helped him up, and walked him over to the car. "I'll get the others out, stay here."

Quatre nodded, "I'll be there as soon as I've got my bearings."

There was a strange noise, like cloth ripping. In front of them, the air shimmered hotly before a crack appeared in the fabric of space. Naomi Matsumi stumbled backward through it as if she'd been thrown carelessly. Heero caught her, and lowered her to the ground. She groaned painfully, "Riko!"

"I'll get her." Heero stood, nodding to Quatre as he turned to run back into the church.

Naomi Matsumi reached out and grabbed Heero's leg. "No! It's too late!" She winced hard, coughing. Blood splatted on the ground in front of her.

Heero crouched down briefly, "What do you mean?"

"It needed people to fix the engine, it was dead!" Naomi shook her head, "It's going to raise its engine!"

Rage rippled coldly over Quatre's face as he grasped Naomi's shoulder, "What the fuc-?"

There was an almighty cracking sound. Heero and Quatre looked up as the church seemed to break from the top as something invisible hit it. Fire swirled around the building as the roof collapsed in. Beside him, Quatre made a pained sound and clutched his chest. "Trowa!"

As the windows shattered outward, chunks of the church's building exploded away. Heero instinctively moved to duck until he realised the destruction had stopped mid-air. He looked with horror at what remained of the church. Riko stood, her arms outstretched, a wide wound of a smile on her face and a spiky halo around her head. Beside her, Duo and Trowa stood, their arms hanging loosely by their sides. Duo seemed to turn and stare out, expressionless as he tapped Trowa on the arm. Both of them turned to gaze out of the ruins of the church. Fire grew around the ruins, and the hovering blocks of debris turned and swarmed back into the church.

"I can't feel them." Quatre said faintly, he reached out to grab Heero's arm. "It's like they're not there anymore…"

Heero couldn't take his eyes off Duo, who stood still as a statue. Fire swirled around them and the building, as it imploded. Soon it became too much and the whole thing disappeared into a single point of impossible light.

Heero stood unsteadily, clawing off his helmet. He dropped it carelessly as he walked forward. Where the dark church had stood, its graveyard that looked like it had vomited coffins…

… there was nothing but a blasted crater, worn as if it had been there for centuries. Heero fell to his knees and stared. The crater was wide and deep; the fencing around where the church had been was twisted and rusted. The earth was scorched, but here and there brown weeds grew. The wind blew gently and Heero looked behind himself at Quatre helplessly.

* * *

The hotel was gone.

They pulled up to the car park and found the same state of decay and rubble as much of the town. As they drove, it was clear that no-one had been here for years; decades even. They had to drive carefully because the roads were covered in wreaked cars and debris. In some places the road had even cracked and determined plants had broken through. Heero had kept his eyes locked on the road, listening with only half an ear as Quatre tended to Naomi behind him.

"It doesn't really understand." She had said weakly, "I don't think it even realises what it's done."

Quatre had unscrewed the lid of another bottle of water, and handed it to her. "Carefully now."

She had drunk slowly, wiping carelessly hand over her mouth, and then she looked out of the window for a long time. "It just wants to go home."

"What is it?" Quatre asked.

"Some kind of intergalactic thing… I think it's from another dimension." Naomi snorted and then coughed dryly. She continued, "It's on the run from something, it thinks what it does is good… but clearly nobody agrees with it. It just wanted to go home… It was holding this all together in a kind of…" Naomi had taken a deep breath and looked at Quatre helplessly, "Some kind of stasis."

"Stasis?"

It made sense now, as they stood in the ruins of the hotel. Quatre stared for a long time at a shadow on the wall. It was fading and it was human shaped. Beside him, Naomi sighed sadly. "It crashed." She closed her eyes and wrapped too thin arms around herself. "The force must have been…" She couldn't finished, a few tears escaping her dark eyes before she forced herself to look away. She got into the car and lay down over the middle seats which the pilots had arranged for her.

Quatre turned away from the shadow on the wall, and gingerly walked over to where Heero was stood by the car. Heero was staring at a dusty skeleton lying across the car park, its tattered uniform might have been Alliance, could have been OZ. It was too bleached by the sun to be able to tell easily. Quatre raised a hand to touch his forehead, head pounding. "They're not here."

"No." Heero shook his head and held up his phone in his good hand, "My phone's dead. It won't charge. Same thing with my laptop."

Quatre nodded slowly. "If we've been here while –" he gestured the ruins "-It's really been like this, then I should expect nothing has been charging."

Heero pocketed his phone and leaned against the car. "I have the nasty feeling we may have been eating bugs and been sleeping on the floor."

"I didn't want to think about that." Quatre made a face and joined him, leaning against the car.

"We may not have been getting as many calls and texts from Jules as we thought." Heero said thoughtfully.

Quatre snorted softly, "Ever the optimist." He looked around and looked up at the billboard. While the structure that held up the billboard looked twisted and old, the advertisement looked as if it had been placed there a day ago. There was a jagged rip across it, and the woman in the advert was stood staring at them. Her hands hung down by her side, and she was burnt horrifically over one side of her face. Despite the rip, it was easy to read the slogan.

_The distant star has risen._

Quatre looked away for a moment, and chewed a lip thoughtfully. He decided to look back at the billboard and was unsurprised to see the woman was much closer, much angrier and looking a little less burnt.

Quatre contemplated the billboard for a long time, before he nodded and walked around the back of the car. Naomi got up and looked over the back of the middle seats. "What are you doing?"

"What's the thing in the billboard?" Quatre asked distractedly, "Is it with the distant star?"

Naomi thought for a moment, "No. It's… it is just something else that slipped through the cracks made by the distant star." She shrugged, "I got the impression it's like a moth, harmless but annoying… or at least that's what the distant star thought. I think it feeds off the fragile—" Naomi stopped herself, "The people that the distant star kept in the hotel. When people weren't any use to the distant star, it put them in the hotel until they stopped … until they died."

"Right." Quatre found the thing he was looking for and straightened. He walked around the car to re-joined Heero, who gave him a brief once over and nodded. "I'm tired of that thing."

"I thought about it." Heero admitted. "Just was trying to decide what level of destruction I wanted." He inclined his head to Quatre, glancing at the item he'd found, "That will do it."

"Figure it was the best option since the bloody thing doesn't appear to be able to move when we're looking at it." Quatre hefted the grenade, an advanced type which Preventers had used to clear blockages and barricades. While small, it packed a contained but powerful explosion. Quatre nodded as he looped a finger around the pin and, in a swift practice motion, pulled the pin and lobbed the grenade at the billboard.

In the time it took for the grenade to hit the billboard, Heero and Quatre looked away and then back. The woman in the billboard was now stood, hands cupped around the tiny grenade, her eyes widened and horror in her face as she looked at them.

Heero stared at the billboard for a long time, waiting for the explosion. Nothing happened. He glanced at Quatre, who had a supremely pleased look on his face.

Without taking his eyes off the billboard, Quatre smiled indulgently. "Remind me later to thank Duo for this. I knew I'd get to destroy something."

Heero shook his head and pushed off the car to walk around it. He got into the driver's seat, and watched Quatre.

Quatre tilted his head thoughtfully; he thought the woman in the billboard looked a little bit angry, maybe a little fearful. Her wide eyes were pinned on him. He breathed in calmly, and held up a middle finger. "Bye-bye."

Quatre finally nodded, and turned to get into the passenger side. Behind him, there was a small, powerful explosion that rocked the car slightly and the billboard screamed metallically as it crashed to the ground.

"Feeling better?" Heero asked as Quatre belted himself in.

"Much."

Heero stared the car and began driving. Naomi leaned forward weakly, "Where are we going?"

"We're going home." Heero answered briefly.

Quatre turned in his chair, "We're going to go get everyone, and I really do mean _everyone_, and then we're going to come back."

"Why?" Naomi gestured out the window, "There's nothing left."

Quatre smiled patiently, "There won't be after we're finished."

"What does that-?"

There was a loud crack and all around them the air shimmered for a moment. The car died. Heero tried to start it, then looked at Quatre. Behind them, Naomi gave a little cry. The Gundam pilots twisted in their seats to stare out of the back window.

In the place where the dark church had been, there was a swirling shaft of light piercing the dark clouds gathered. Rain fell hard, and all around them the landscape seemed to mend itself. It was as if they'd been thrown back into the illusion of Happiness being normal again… There was a deep sound, long and so hard the car vibrated with the noise. The light seemed to be escaping into the sky. When the last of it went, the air seemed to shimmer again. Heero looked around as the rain faded away and the skies cleared, and all around them, Happiness returned to its deep state of ruin. He looked at Quatre, who was sat staring into the distance. "Are you alright?"

"They're behind us." Quatre muttered, he swallowed hard. "I can feel them." He pressed the heel of his hand hard against his chest where his heart was. "It's so hard…"

The car started again but because it was in gear, it stalled. Heero turned his attention to the vehicle and started it again. He glanced at Quatre, "So do we go back?"

"No. We're …" Quatre frowned, "Now we're behind them." He looked at Heero, "They're not here anymore."

Naomi shook her head. "It… it may free them…" She swallowed hard, "I didn't really understand but choosing the manner of your death was important to it." She raised a shaking hand to her head, "It might have freed them like it freed the other pilot." Naomi laughed bitterly, "Pilot number five. He was always Riko's favourite Gundam pilot." Her laugh turned into quiet weeping, "She must have been so excited to meet you all… She thought he was so cool…"

Heero and Quatre exchanged a hard, determined look. Heero turned his attention to the road ahead and started driving.

* * *

When they finally pulled into the Preventer outpost, they arrived to frightened looking agents and a very pale commander. Heero stopped the car and held his hands up. Quatre made a stop motion to Naomi and got out with his hands up as well. The commander almost staggered. He looked at one of his agents, "Go get them!"

Heero glanced over at Quatre. Quatre seemed to tilt his head, thinking and then he nodded, lowering his hands. He started walking forward, "I imagine it's been a little while since you last saw us. We have wounded in the car."

"Are you kidding?" The commander choked out, "It's been almost a month."

The door to the building burst open and a number of familiar soldiers started piling out. Quatre smiled tightly as a familiar bear of a man jogged over. "Ah." Quatre looked up at the man as he slowed to a stop. "Hi Rashid!" He scrunched his nose in a slightly embarrassed manner, "Sorry for worrying you."

Rashid's eyes narrowed before he opened his arms and pulled Quatre into a hug. He breathed a sigh of relief. "You didn't seem to realise we were calling you. I called you to check in; you seemed to think I couldn't tell you apart from a woman called Becky?"

"Becky?" Quatre looked at Heero, who gave him an equally confused look. "You didn't call me..." Quatre shook his head, pulling out his dead phone. "We only got calls from Jules."

"Yes, this Jules person." Rashid made a disgusted face, "Once we realised he was connected to..." Rashid pursed his lips, "Pilot Zero Three." Rashid almost snarled, "I will be having words with Zero Three, Master Quatre. This Jules … he looks like—"

Quatre made an appeasing gesture. "I know, Trowa told me already."

"We stand ready for your orders." Rashid reassured him, a fervent look in his eye, "If you had met this—"

"I… I know." Quatre smiled, holding up a restraining hand to pat Rashid. "Carry on."

"We were able to track him down and the Preventers realised that none of the pilots were making any sense when the calls managed to get through." He gestured the nervous looking Preventers commander, "We arrived here when it was clear this was the last place anyone spoke to you directly. Commander Javier has been helpful, despite the circumstances."

"Circumstances?" Heero looked at Javier, who wiped at his brow.

"Do you have any idea how stressful it is to realise you're the last person who saw or spoke to the Gundams before they potentially died?" Javier shook his head, "General Une is a terrifying woman when she doesn't get the answers she wants." He gestured the building, "Shall we treat your wounded?"

* * *

"How are you feeling?" Quatre sank back into his seat, glancing at Naomi. Opposite them, Heero stared out the window, his only outward sign of impatience the way his fingers occasionally tapping the seat. The Preventers outpost medic had managed to give Naomi some boosters, but was clear she needed to get to a proper medical facility. Thanks to Rashid bringing the entire Maganac Corps with him, one of Quatre's private airliners was available to take them back. The only problem was the short notice take off; they were cleared to only land at the nearest commercial airport to Preventers Central.

"Fine, thank you. Tired, but recovering." Naomi said slowly, almost horizontal in her first class seat. "I had no real concept of how stupid rich you were." Her electric blue hair had benefited from the hot showers at the Preventer outpost. Naomi reached out and picked up her bottle of water, which was almost empty. Rashid made a small gesture, and another bottle of water appeared in her cup holder. Naomi smiled at the young man delivering her drink. "Thank you." She leaned forward, "And thank you, Mr..."

"Rashid." Rashid replied gruffly, "Nobody calls me my full name." He glanced at Quatre, "How are you feeling?"

"A little dazed." Quatre admitted, "A little confused. Did you really have to bring everyone?"

"Une expressed concern that you seemed to all be increasingly unable to form coherent sentences for this ..." Rashid made a small expression of disgust, "This Jules person. Once even Heero's phone only connected to voice mail, we knew we had to come in."

Heero nodded, "Understandable. However, I get the sense you didn't succeed."

"You'd be right. Every time we got to the border of where Happiness was supposed to be located, we'd get turned around. No matter which direction." Rashid made a circular gesture, "We'd always turn back up at the Preventers' outpost. Javier was becoming a little frightened he'd sent you all to your—" Rashid stopped himself, "He was concerned that he'd sent you into danger. Rightfully so, it would seem."

Quatre nodded, "Yes." He looked at Rashid reassuringly, "But they're not dead. Don't worry."

Rashid's expression was concerned, but he tipped his head toward Quatre, "You have survived much that some would call impossible. We all feared that this was the end of the Gundams."

"Ffftt." Quatre made a dismissive noise, "It'll take more than time-warping, interdimensional, reality twisting cosmic beings, on the run from their own kind, without a sound understanding of human—"

"It was a pirate." Naomi interrupted thoughtfully. She blinked when Quatre shot her a slightly unimpressed look. "What? It was in a ship that sailed around space and time stealing from others. The very definition of a pirate." She glanced at Heero quizzically. Heero had turned his attention to Quatre, his expression slightly smug.

"Say it."

"I will not. I said we'd meet serial-killing cannibals."

Heero looked affronted. "I'm still right."

"You're not. It was an alien."

"It was a pirate."

"It was an alien. Duo was right."

"Duo's never right." Heero made a sceptical expression, speaking as if it should have been obvious.

Quatre rolled his eyes, "True, but reality was warped in Happiness so this time he was."

"You concede it was a pirate."

"Alien pirate. Alien comes first in that sentence."

"Alien is just the qualifier, it was a pirate."

Naomi blinked and leaned forward to look at Rashid. The tall man wore a faraway expression on his face as if he'd retreated into his own mind. The Gundam pilots continued to bicker.

"With a broken engine, almost like it had lost its connection to its own world because of its broken …" Quatre looked up and waved a blithe hand, "Oh, for lack of a better word … internet connection." Quatre sat up straight and jabbed a finger into his chair, "Looks like Wufei was right. Would you like _Wufei_ to be right?"

Heero sucked on a tooth, looking to Naomi as if he was carefully weighing his options. Eventually he nodded, and looked away. He tapped the armrest twice and that seemed to signal something to Quatre, who sat back calmly. "I didn't think so."

Naomi looked between them and then slowly looked at Quatre, "Did you just win an argument against another Gundam pilot by threatening to yeet another Gundam pilot at him?"

Quatre stared at her blankly for a moment, until Heero sighed quietly. They both looked at him, as Heero glanced up as if arguing with himself for a moment. He nodded to Naomi, "Yeet … it's a word that means to bodily throw something or someone at something or someone else."

"Why do you know that?" Quatre said in confusion even as he began to laugh. "It's not a real word! I refuse to acknowledge it! How would you-?"

Heero raised his hands in a quick helpless gesture, "Duo."

* * *

Heero was first off the plane as soon as it landed. On the ground, Zech and Noin waited patiently for them along with a number of other agents. Rashid stayed behind to give orders to the Maganac Corps, while Quatre helped Naomi limp towards a waiting car. Noin stepped forward to help. She hooked an arm into Naomi's and smiled, "Hi. Are you Becky?"

"What?" Naomi smiled back in confusion, "No. I'm Naomi… Naomi Matsumi."

"Oh good, good. They found you. Glad it wasn't all for nothing." Noin nodded happily and helped Naomi get into the vehicle. She closed the door, and walked around to hug Quatre tightly. "Good to see you. Who the hell is Becky?"

"Becky?"

"Becky with the blue eyes, you said." She gestured Rashid, "Did he not tell you about the phone calls? I called you six times, and every time you'd start trying to convince me I was trying to talk to Becky, the one with the blue eyes." Noin put a hand on her hip, "I mean… I know you thought you were talking to Trowa's sleezeball ex, but seriously, I'm dying to know, who the hell is Becky?"

Quatre shrugged, "I don't know, I was just messing with Jules."

Zechs shook his head and folded his graceful arms, looking down at Heero. "Glad to see you survived, Yuy."

"Give me your phone." Heero replied curtly.

"…Not unlike a cockroach." Zechs sighed, looking into the distance, "As usual."

"Give me your phone."

"Why should I? We're taking you to Preventers Central as soon as we confirm with Une. She's got a situation at the headquarters—"

"Give me your phone." Heero looked up at him. "Or I will shoot you."

Zech snorted imperiously, "You're unarmed."

Heero raised a gun and cocked it.

Zechs stared at it.

Heero stared at Zechs. "Give me your phone."

"That's my gun."

"And I'm going to shoot you in the knee with it." Heero lowered the gun. "Give me your phone."

"Zechs!" Noin shouted from the driver's side of the car. "Will you just give him your bloody phone?"

Zechs narrowed his eyes before grudgingly giving up his phone in exchange for the gun. "You win this round."

Heero tapped away at the phone, walking away. "I win every round."

"You do not." Zechs replied peevishly, visibly annoyed when Heero held up a shushing finger at him.

Heero listened intently to the phone as it connected to the call he was making. He nodded once, "Duo. Heero. We're bringing everyone. See you soon."

Quatre walked up to him, "Did you get through?"

"No. Voicemail." Heero dialled again and raised the phone to his ear. He paused a moment, listening. "I love you. Hold it together. I'm coming for you." He jabbed the call off, staring thoughtfully at the phone for a moment.

Zech held his hand out, "Can I have my phone back?"

"Is it your Preventer-issued one?" Heero asked. When Zechs nodded, he began typing away at the phone. He walked away to the car, and got in. Zechs looked sourly at Quatre.

"Why couldn't you have brought one of the more useful ones back with you?" He asked testily. "Yuy, give me back my phone! You've already cost me fifty dollars!"

Heero got back out of the car, looking alarmed. He held up the phone, "We've got to go! Relena's in trouble as well!"

"What?!" Zechs shouted, running to the car, "I thought she was meeting with Une!"

* * *

Notes: Hold up, rewind... Thank you for joining me as we come to the end.


	23. Always gonna answer

**Disclaimer**: hahahahahahaha… I'm so old. You know the score.

**Notes**: But as usual, it's Wufei who gets shit done.

_**Song**__: Blackway & Black Caviar – What's Up Danger?_

* * *

_I'm insane but on my toes  
I could keep the world balanced on my nose  
I had a slumber party wit' all my foes  
Now I wear 'em like a badge of honor all my clothes  
If I'm crazy, I'm on my own  
If I'm waitin', it's on my throne  
If I sound lazy, just ignore my tone  
'Cause I'm always gonna answer when you call my phone_

* * *

**Eldritch Holiday**

By Doctor Megalomania

* * *

_Two-thousand on thermometers  
Two-thousand surroundin' us  
Travel two-thousand kilometers  
To hang out with us  
What's up, danger?_

* * *

**Chapter 22** – Always gonna answer when you call my phone

* * *

"We've got to run!"

"What about-?"

"They'll figure it out!" Wufei grabbed her arm painfully, "It wants you!" He pulled her forward, and they made a run for the exit, scrabbling over the debris in their way. Through air that rippled oddly, Matsumi stepped out from behind the last pillar, raised her arm and swept it to the side. Riko and Wufei were swept into the wall.

Wufei opened his eyes to water, murky and black. Their dying torches illuminated enough to show decaying machinery, a cockpit of some sort and … a skull floated past before a crack opened up in the fabric of space and a hand grabbed Riko by her vest. Wufei moved quickly, bracing his feet against something metallic. Air gushed through the crack as water drained out. Riko was able to take a great gulp of air, while trying to undo her vest.

"Hold on!" Wufei shouted, "Above your head!"

Riko abandoned trying to undo her vest, and scrabbled above her head, trying to find purchase on the slimy metal surfaces. Wufei felt them shift as she briefly lost her grip. It was enough to make something sharp snap and jab into his leg; buckling, he lost his balance and heard the vest rip before he dipped under the water's surface.

Her aunt's arm briefly let Riko go, sending both of them over. It darted out and grabbed her by her throat. Riko went abruptly slack in a way Wufei wasn't expecting. That, combined with the pain, made him lose his grip.

Her aunt's body pulled her out of the crack.

Wufei watched as the fissure shimmered closed, too fast for him to launch himself into it. He smacked the nearest surface, "Shit."

Taking a breath, he centred himself and took stock of his injuries. A sharp thing had sliced into his leg, close to a hamstring but superficial. He was bleeding. He ripped off material from his sleeve and made a makeshift bandage – the material was as dirty as the rest of him but it was the least of his problems. He reached out and touched the nearest surface. He was in a mobile suit cockpit. He'd spent long enough in one to recognise it even in the pitch black. He ran his fingers over slimy buttons, trying all the codes he knew. It was OZ make, he recognised it. He shifted to sit in the pilot seat, only to be stopped by what was clearly a skeleton. He shifted the body out of the way, clearly decayed to the point of being nothing but a uniform of bones. He silently said a prayer, and got to work. Feeling blindly around the cockpit, he realised it was too water logged to get started. The water level was also slowly rising again.

Wufei closed his eyes for a moment, and let his head hang. He battled the rising panic, the chaotic emotions threatening to overwhelm him. _Red flowers, a gentle smile as she died in the field._ He could let go. Join her at last. Water lapped at his waist now. The air was getting thin again. _Lime green nails over dark, tearful eyes. Blue flowers on vines that disappeared down the back of a ratty tee. A warm hand trailing over his- _Wufei's eyes snapped open.

"I am not going to die in this western horror movie, Maxwell." He spat, thumping the console in front of him. "SHIT!"

Dropping into a meditative state, he was just sitting back, slowing his breath, slowing down his heart, when the air to his left shimmered slightly. There was a gust of fresh air, and a hand reached through.

Lime green nails, and golden skin.

Riko's hand held a strange thing, translucent, liquidly metallic and egg shaped. It had strange tendrils that seemed to glow at the tips like a jellyfish. Riko's hand gently lowered the thing onto the control unit of the mobile suit and the tendrils reached out across the controls, diving into the grimy steering. Once the thing started to throb with light, Riko's hand delicately let go. Wufei stared at her hand, watching as it gently counted down: three, two, one…

The mobile suit began to power up. Wufei blinked in shock as displays flickered on, a fan somewhere above him rattled to life and the console lit up around him. He looked at Riko's hand as it began to withdraw and reached out to grab her hand. He pulled with all his might, bracing his good leg against the console. He succeeded in pulling Riko's top half through the small fracture in reality.

"Riko?"

"The herald is not here," the thing in Riko's body replied in a bored tone, "The herald asked me to ensure your survival further than I already have as her reward. I am granting that wish."

Rage consumed Wufei and he grabbed Riko's chin, holding it tight. "Listen to me, you bastard. You let her go."

Riko's eyes were blank; the thing inside her seemed to just observe him. "She tells me you are special. She thinks you are so cool. She weeps for you. You fragile things. She screams for you. I don't understand. She prays that you will not use her death as an excuse." It narrowed Riko's dark eyes thoughtfully. "She prays to the deity Relena, prays that this Relena can make it all worth it again."

Wufei's jaw clenched. He ground out, "Can she hear me?"

A tear slipped from Riko's expressionless eye. "Perhaps. You are a distraction. You are all filled with such distractions." Riko's body reached up and wrapped a hand around his wrist. She squeezed with supernatural strength. "Such distractions. You fragile things."

"Riko. Listen to me." Wufei stared at her, feeling his grip weaken. "I will come for you. I promise."

Riko's body pulled his hand away and she held him at arm's length for a long moment, staring at him with something that approached curiosity. "You cannot comprehend how I have blessed this herald." It tilted her head. "Yet… I will free her."

Riko's body withdrew, and Wufei stared at where it had been as it shimmered out of existence.

He turned his attention to the mobile suit; enough of it was back online for him to raise the location screen. Staring at it with a grimace, he realised exactly where he was.

* * *

General Une sat at her desk; chin on her clasped hands, staring at the cute succulent plant Duo had bought her. Her coffee was cold, and she was waiting. Zechs and Noin had just left to take a commercial flight to Happiness to support Rashid. Apparently even the full might of Winner's private army hadn't managed to get into Happiness. Zechs and Noin were heading out there with more Preventers who were skilled in the art of detecting and dismantling camouflage devices.

There was a quiet knock at the door, and her secretary peered in cautiously. "Ma'am?"

Une nodded, "Let them in."

She took a deep breath and stood from her chair, taking a moment to ready herself. She stared out across the city from her window. Behind her, the door closed with a firm snap.

"What on earth were you thinking?" Relena's voice was low and angry. "I've read the email chain and—"

Une sighed and turned around, "They were on holiday and Duo was bored." She made a gesture towards the other people behind Relena, "Perhaps you'd like to ask Hilde what happened the last time Duo got as seriously bored as he clearly was before I let him go."

Making an impatient sigh, Relena glanced at Hilde. Hilde stood with her arms folded. The woman shrugged and tapped her decorated eye patch.

"Who do you think petitioned for and wrote the convention that enabled Duo to go on this holiday?" Hilde shook her head and reached out to pat Relena on the shoulder. "A bored Gundam pilot is a dangerous Gundam pilot; you know that."

Relena looked like she might protest until Dorothy laughed and swept past her to sit in a chair in front of Une's desk. She turned slightly and gazed at Relena indulgently, "Darling, you do know that." She made a dismissive gesture. "I've been keeping up with the personal reviews of the pilots, and frankly, it was obvious that Duo was becoming … perilously fed up with his job in the mechanics." She shook her head, and counted off on her fingers as she spoke, "There's a reason for the Maxwell Protocol, the Chang Principle, the Barton Procedure…" Her expression momentarily went blank as she muttered, "The Winner Memo…" She smiled at Relena brightly, "Don't tell me you're not intimately aware of the Yuy Theorem."

"Heero's not that…" Relena trailed off, fiddling with a bracelet for a moment. "Alright, he is that bad. But…" She glanced at Une who was now sitting at her desk, "Surely you should have made this an official operation—"

"On what basis, Relena?" Une replied dourly, "It's a missing person's case at best. I couldn't possibly justify sending five of our most effective agents out on a missing persons case."

Relena made an impatient noise and sat down next to Dorothy. "Fine."

Hilde chuckled, "Now you're getting it, Miss Peacecraft." She moved to lean against Une's desk, facing Relena, and folded her arms. She cut a striking figure in her preventer uniform. She smiled in a way that reminded Relena too much of Duo. "Besides, considering the supernatural twist this trap has taken, I can't think of anyone better to get anyone out of there than that bunch of idiots."

Relena shook her head, "I know that…" She frowned, "But Duo's boredom cost you an eye."

"That's the wrong way around." Hilde snorted, "I lost my eye because we didn't adhere to the Maxwell Principle."

"Uh huh." Relena made a disbelieving noise.

Dorothy leaned over, "Darling. Do you remember the last time you ignored Heero?" She smiled patiently, "Six people died and Heero shot your brother in the leg."

"Yes, okay." Relena tapped the desk twice. "What now?"

"We're waiting for Mike Howard to arrive. Perhaps we can find out a little more about this professor the boys have gone to find." Une sat back in her chair, "I've sent Zechs and Noin to catch a plane and join Rashid in Happiness. I've got Sally Po interrogating Julius Reine, in case he has more information – he's the last one here to have actually spoken to Trowa before we lost contact. Hilde's going to work with Howard to see if we can—"

Her door flew open, a mechanic walked in with her secretary blustering after her. The short, older woman stuck a hand back to push Une's secretary back. Une stood up and held a hand out to shake the mechanic's hand. "Commander Royston."

"Une." Royston pumped Une's hand twice before nodding at Hilde, "Schbieker."

Hilde grinned broadly, and wrapped the shorter woman in a hug. "Royston."

Royston patted Hilde on the back twice hard, "When you getting back in some damned overalls, kid?" She pulled back, "You look like you're on parade."

"I'm almost done with the L2 rotation." Hilde nodded, "I'll be back in summer. Good job with Duo, by the way."

"Hah." Royston snorted. "About that, huh?"

"Good job?" Relena stood, she held out a hand to Royston. "Relena Peacecraft."

"Joan Royston." Royston shook Relena's hand.

Une chuckled, "Relena, you're looking at Duo's current manager, and the title holder of the longest continuous time that Duo has not committed any security breaches."

Royston nodded, "Three years, five months." She turned to Une, "Came to tell ya that Howard's arrived, and there's something hinky with one of the mobile suits he's brought with him."

"Hinky?" Hilde asked, "Like what could be hinky with a decade old suit scraped up from the bottom of the North Atlantic Ocean?"

"Hmm. That's what I thought, but Howard's freaking out. One of the containers is making a noise apparently; they're just offloading it now." She dug out her phone and dialled, placing the call on speaker. "Yo, Howard."

"You with the others?"

"Gots me Une, Hilde, Relena Peacecraft and …" She glanced at Dorothy, "Uh… Dorothy Catalonia."

"Great, great. Hi girls!"

Relena leaned forward, "Hi Howard!"

"Okay, you listen up." Howard raised his voice as he shifted the phone into speaker mode. In the background, a deep clanking noise became more obvious. Hilde frowned as she leant forward, closing her eyes as she listened.

"Can you hear that?" Howard shouted over the repeating clanging. "Sounds like one of the suits is moving in there!"

"Howard, shut up!" Hilde said, she shook her head, closing her eyes. "That rhythm sounds so familiar."

"Yes!" Relena raised her hands to her forehead, threading her fingers into her fringe. "I've heard it before!"

She screwed her eyes shut for a long moment, reaching out blindly to pull the phone closer. Her other hand formed a fist and she began to knock in time with it. Occasionally she'd miss a beat.

Une stood, opening her mouth to say something but Dorothy shot to her feet, holding up her hands to motion everyone quiet.

Relena gasped, "Safe house!"

Hilde's eyes widened and she ran out of the room, swearing. "YES! SHIT! ROYSTON, WHICH LEVEL?!"

Royston ran after her, shouting into her phone, "We're on our way, Howard!"

Relena glanced at Une, who reached over to grab her by the arm. "Safe house?"

"They used to knock on the door like that at all hours of the night. Drove me nuts!" Relena looked down for a moment, confused, "That wasn't Heero's knock though." She appeared even more puzzled as she met Une's eye. "It's Wufei's…!"

Dorothy snorted as if amused and started sashaying towards the door, "Oh this should be fun… Wufei's separated from the other pilots, in an enemy combatant's mobile suit, that just so happens to be arriving at Preventers Headquaters."

Une punched a number into her phone; she lifted the phone to her ear. "Noin, are you on the plane yet? … Good. Hold position until you hear from me again!"

* * *

By the time they had drained the container, lifted out the mobile suit and manoeuvred it so Royston and Hilde could start taking a blowtorch to the damaged cockpit, the suit had stopped moving and powered down. It was as dead as when it had been when it had been lifted out of the sea. Une watched as the cockpit covering fell away and Royston and Hilde pried the shell open. Dirty water and grotty bones drained out of the suit and in the cockpit chair, impatient and angry, sat Wufei Chang.

He stood as gracefully as his injured leg would let him and jump down from the suit to land on the gangway, and glared at them with imperious fury. "Took you long enough."

He ripped off his drenched combat vest, and took a moment to wring his hair.

"How did you…?" Howard stared at the mobile suit, his expression filled with disbelief.

"Doesn't matter." Wufei pulled off his shirt, leaving himself standing in a vet and his trousers. He glowered around himself for a moment and then pointed at Relena, "You. Phone Heero. Hilde, Duo. Catalonia, Winner. Une, Barton." When they didn't move, he clapped his hands twice. "Wake up! I need you to call them! Speakerphone all of them."

The four broke out of their dazes and made the calls – all of which went straight to voicemail. They held their phones out to Wufei who turned in a tight circle. "Alright," He said loudly, "Listen up you arseholes! I'm very annoyed and I'm coming to get you! You'd better have Riko back with you!"

Wufei stalked off at a rapid pace.

Hanging up, Une shook her head and smiled dangerously, "You know what's more hazardous than a bored Gundam pilot?" She glanced at Howard who had gone pale. "An angry Gundam pilot. Lord have mercy…"

"My thoughts and prayers are with whatever's got this Riko." Hilde laughed and tapped Relena on the elbow, "We better catch up!"

* * *

Sally took a couple more moments to breathe. She was bent over the table, hands splayed as she stared at Julius. Spread on the interrogation table in front of them were a number of phone logs showing messages between him and the pilots. It was clear that he'd made contact with all of them, even Quatre Winner, before they disappeared.

"Can I go yet?" Julius asked, rattling his handcuffs pleadingly. "I've told you everything I know."

Sally shook her head, "You must have heard something before we lost contact…"

"Nothing, I swear. I…" Julius shook his head, "I just wanted Trowa to know how much I mean to him."

"Please." Sally held up a hand, "You sicken me." She stood up straight and gestured the various explicit photos on the table, "None of this is okay and—"

The door slammed open and Wufei walked in. "Po! You're with me." He glanced down at the table and then at Julius. "You're Jules?"

"Oh, Heero!" Julius leaned forward, "Trowa told me—"

"No. You shut up." Wufei looked at Sally, "You. We need to go now. Going to get on the same plane as Noin and Zechs."

"Good to see you too, partner." Sally's smile was crooked, "You wanna maybe change before you go? You stink like you been pissed on by your cat." Wufei's expression was stormy. Sally laughed at it, and pulled out her phone. "I'll call Noin and tell her to save us a seat while you shower."

Wufei nodded tightly, and then regarded Julius. "When we get back, we're going to talk about fucking boundaries!"

"But Heero—"

"I don't have time for you, you ignorant bastard!" Wufei roared as he pointed a finger at him, "But when I get back—"

"He's already being dealt with by HR." Sally looped an arm into Wufei's and dragged him out of the room. "Come on, let's go! You need some dry gear stat."

* * *

Sally glanced over at her partner. She'd never seen him so preoccupied. He was staring firmly out of the window as they drove to the airport. Une was in the car ahead with Relena and Dorothy; Sally and Hilde drove with Howard. They were accompanied by a battalion of Preventers and all of the vehicles were driving at high speed, lights flashing.

"…So." Sally started. "Who is Becky?"

"I don't fucking know," Wufei replied tonelessly. His fingers beat an impatient rhythm on his thigh.

Sally smiled, "Okay. Who's Riko?"

That got a reaction of him. His fingers stilled and tightened on his leg. "Professor Matsumi's niece."

"Oh. Okay… Seems important."

"She's…" He swallowed, glancing at Sally. Vulnerability in his dark eyes. "She's a good person."

"I'm glad." Sally nodded, "Did you at least get her number?"

Wufei's expression turned reassuringly sour for a moment before he appeared to remember. "I did! Give me your phone!" He dialled the number and pressed the phone against his ear. It apparently went straight to voicemail, making him lean forward with a pained expression. His voice was low as he spoke.

"I don't know what to say. So hold on. I'm coming back for you."

He hung up and then passed the phone back to Sally. She tucked it away into her coat pocket before reached out a hand to grasp his. "We're going to do our best, partner."

"Yes." He said tightly, pulling his hand out of hers after a moment. She watched as he folded his arms closely and stared out of the window.

"So…" She began again, a knowing smile pulling at her lips, "You know her number off by heart, then?"

"I needed to be able to call her."

"Uh huh. You don't know my number off by heart. You need to call me all the time."

"She's a good person."

"So you say."

Wufei frowned and looked at Sally. She had started typing on to her phone with a smug smile.

"Are you texting Noin?"

"Oh no, honey." Sally smiled distractedly, "This is going into the group chat…"

Wufei rolled his eyes, "She's just a good person, Sally! Easy to get along with and a messy but cute sleeper—" He cut himself off and snapped his head back to stare out the window.

Sally chuckled, "Oh really? Tell me more!"

* * *

Relena was impatient by the time they arrived at the airport, not even waiting for Wufei's car to park before taking off group of Preventers and Une. They set off at a jog, and the others had to run to catch up. Wufei zipped up his fresh Preventers' coat as they entered the vast arrivals lounge.

Une was talking to an airport official, her expression stern. She glanced at Wufei as he caught up. "They've been asked to keep an eye out for the other two, just in case…" She gestured the official, "Heero and Quatre have just landed; Noin and Zechs are trying to bring them here."

Wufei nodded. "They'll be trying to get everyone to go back." He eyed Relena thoughtfully, "Give me the bracelet that Heero gave you."

Relena blinked, confused. "What?"

"The one he gave you and told you to always keep close." He clicked his fingers impatiently, "The one that's hard to take off so you just leave it on all the time!"

She held out her arm, and he pulled her closer to examine the bracelet she indicated. He touched a few of the beads before settling on one. Holding the bead tight, he hooked his fingers under the bracelet and pulled until it broke. The bead in his fingers started flashing dully.

"What is that?" Relena asked in confusion. "Is that … is that a beacon? Why is there a beacon on my bracelet?"

Wufei held the bead up fondly. "If a situation exists, Heero Yuy is prepared for it."

"Jesus fucking Christ, Heero." Relena's bright blue eyes were incredulous, she looked at Wufei. "How is this going to help us?"

Wufei looked at her with a warm smile. "Heero is missing in a crowd of people and I've just effectively shouted 'Relena Peacecraft has been kidnapped again'." He sighed with relief, "Now we just need to wait."

* * *

They did not have to wait long. There were some angry shouts and some screams as a crowd of people parted to reveal Heero running, gun in hand and a phone held out in front of him. Just behind him, Zechs ran behind him, armed with one arm outstretched with his preventer badge on view. Wufei stepped forward, and Heero skidded to a halt, focussed beyond him on Relena.

Lips pressed into a unimpressed expression, Relena waved at him.

Wufei held up the bead for Heero to see.

A expression of relief passed over Heero's face. He turned to throw the gun to Zechs before jogging forward. Wufei dropped the bead and met him half way.

The two Gundam Pilots hugged tightly.

Heero grabbed Wufei by the back of the head and held on as they rocked side to side. Wufei buried his face in Heero's neck. Heero's eyes filled with tears, and he began to nod. Taking a ragged breath both, they stepped back from each other and touched foreheads. Wufei gave one nod, as did Heero before they parted.

Wufei took a step to the side, and Heero turned with him to stare.

Quatre and Noin were helping Naomi Matsumi walk slowly after them. Noin glanced between the two pilots in front of her, and Quatre. Naomi cleared her throat, smiling at Quatre, "I'm going to be fine. Why don't you—"

She didn't even finish her sentence before Quatre dashed off.

He skidded into a hard hug, throwing his arms around both Heero and Wufei's necks. Wufei and Heero wrapped an arm around Quatre and the other arm around each other. The three embraced hard. Quatre's face lit up in a bright grin, his bright blue eyes welling up with tears. He pulled out of the hug to hold Wufei's hand tightly in both of his. Wufei touched his forehead against Quatre's and raised a hand to cup Quatre's cheek. They nodded at each other as well. Quatre laughed as he let go to wipe at his face.

"Excuse me…"

Une blinked as the airport official she'd been talking to tapped her arm. He held up a tablet, two photos from the passport control booths side by side. "You were saying the other two are missing…" He tapped the screen to zoom in on a couple of passengers who were walking away from the booths. "We think they've just passed border security. We lost them in the crowd but…" He gestured behind him, "They should be coming through here any moment now…"

Une looked around, scanning the vast room. Her eyes caught on a woman with bright orange hair, arm looped with a familiar person who raised a hand to wave-

"There they are!" Une shouted and waved to the others to follow her.

Wufei snorted. "Looks like I don't need to raze Happiness to the ground to kick Maxwell's backside after all..."

The three pilots took off at a jog.

"Make a hole!" Heero called as they quickly ran past the armed Preventers.

There in front of them, mere metres away, were Duo, Riko and Trowa.

Trowa realised what was happening first, dropping his holdall and sprinting forward. He skidded to a halt in front of Quatre and looking for a moment as if his knees were buckling. Quatre shook his head and wrapped Trowa into a tight embrace, speaking words for him alone. Trowa rocked into the embrace unsteadily, saying over and over, "Thank you."

"RIKO!" Naomi Matsumi cried happily as she wobbled unsteadily forward, "Riko! You're ok!"

"Auntie!" Riko ran into her and caught sight of Wufei over her aunt's shoulder, mouthing, "Thank you!"

Wufei glanced at her briefly before he too was yanked into a tight hug. Duo almost squeezed the life out of him, and he pulled at Duo's matted braid hard. "Hey! Hey!" Wufei muttered as soon as he could breathe, "Cut this out! I didn't die!"

Duo pulled back to snort wetly. "It would have been your own fault if you had, because you cursed us all. I told you not to say it again…" Duo held out an arm, and Heero joined the hug as well, opening his arm to Trowa. The five of them stood in a circle, arms around each other as they fell silent for a moment, their heads bent forward, touching.

They stood like that for a long moment, before each nodding and the circle broke up.

Wufei stepped back from it, his attention wandering back to Riko.

Riko had also pulled herself away from her aunt for a moment; Naomi smiled thankfully, letting her go as Sally and Hilde swiftly stepped forward to give Naomi some support. Riko twisted her hands together for a moment, her dark eyes widening fearfully. "I'm … so … I'm so sorry! I almost-!"

Wufei shook his head mutely, reaching a hand out. He pulled Riko's arm toward him, and traced his finger over her wrist, over the tiny blue forget-me-not he knew was there. He brought his eyes up to meet hers. He opened his mouth to speak, but couldn't get the words out. He shook his head and swallowed thickly. He drew a deep breath, in and hold and out and …

"You saved me. You asked it to come back for me." He said finally, joyful even as his eyes welled up with tears. "You're stronger than you think."

A flash of Wufei's fury came back to her and Riko took a jagged breath, "I didn't want to be another scar."

Wufei shook his head, looking down as he stroked her inner wrist. He looked up, staring into her eyes for a long moment. Riko seemed to understand as the fear in her drained away, and a smile appeared on her lips like a sunrise.

He looked at her, looked at her beautiful hair, looked … over her shoulder as Sally frantically tried to wave at him. He tilted his head at her, confused.

'_Kiss her!'_ Sally mouthed obviously, pointing at Riko_. 'Kiss the goddamn girl!'_

Sternly, Wufei slowly shook his head at Sally. Riko glanced around in confusion. Sally smiled brightly and stuck out her hand. Riko shook her hand with a worried glance at Wufei.

"Hi." Sally pulled Riko into a tight hug, "I'm Sally Po." She pulled back and grinned, "Let's talk about how we know Wufei. I'll start; I'm Wufei's partner in the Preventers! I work with him because we're strictly platonic friends!" She scrunched her nose and gestured Riko. "Now you?"

"Uh. Nice to meet you!" Riko chuckled, "I'm just… Uh, we just met while he was on a mission to save my auntie… Oh, Sally?" Riko blinked as if she'd just remembered, "Wufei said you look after Pumpkin!"

Sally took a step back and put a hand on her hip. "So… Wufei told you about the cat, did he? Hmm…" She grinned at Wufei, her eyes bright. "Interesting twist." She turned her attention back to Riko, holding out both of her hands. "Did I mention, I'm also a medical doctor, and you're looking a little peaky?" She pulled Riko with her. "Let's go get you checked out, shall we?"

Wufei's shoulders dropped as he watched them walk away, "Sally!"

"Well." He heard Trowa say. He stridently ignored them as the other pilots stood either side of him. On one side, Quatre and Trowa stood, on the other, Heero and Duo. They all had their arms crossed and were watching as Sally led Riko to some nearby seats.

"Don't." Wufei began warningly.

"So she knows about the cat." Quatre said, eyes narrowing at Wufei. "I didn't know about the cat."

"We already had this conversation," Wufei growled threateningly, "Didn't we?"

"Oh, I'm just making an observation." Quatre sniffed airily.

"Speaking of observations," Wufei dipped forward to glare at Trowa. "I met Jules. He's an asshole. He thinks I'm Heero."

"He thinks everyone's Heero." Duo replied, smile on his face. "Except for Heero, I made sure he thought Heero was Becky."

Heero frowned for a long moment, before turning his head to Duo. "Why did you do that?"

"Dunno…" Duo stretched his arms over his head, "Got bored."

Heero shook his head, smiling faintly.

Wufei rolled his eyes, "Yuy, stop finding him adorable! It only encourages him."

A soft chuckle from in front of them interrupted their conversation. Naomi smiled and held a hand over her mouth delicately. "Sorry, I didn't realise you were all so silly." She gestured Riko, "You wouldn't have guessed it at all from any of the posters or photos that Riko used to plaster her bedroom with—"

"AUNTIE, NO!" Riko yelled, outraged.

Naomi laughed harder, shaking a finger towards Riko. "She was just a couple of years younger than you boys, when she saw you…" She pointed at Duo, "Being tortured by OZ for the world to see, she—"

Riko grabbed her aunt by the arm sternly, "Auntie! Can we not, please?" She gestured the pilots. "They just saved our lives." Her voice dropped threateningly, "They don't need to know, Auntie."

Naomi chuckled knowingly and then blinked in surprise. She frowned, reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone in confusion.

"I thought this ran out weeks ago."

She raised a hand and tapped at the screen, glancing between it and Howard, standing behind her, in puzzlement. "Howard…" She held up her phone, "Did you just email me?"

"Now?" Howard spread his hands and then scratched his head, "Obviously not?"

"Well, I've just received an email reassuring me that you've got my back."

"What? Just now?" He walked forward to look at her device. "But I sent that weeks ago…"

At that point, Dorothy strode up to Quatre, her arms crossed. She was staring up and over the pilots' head in confusion.

"Boys..." she started, halting for a moment to point up. "Is it just me… or is that… coffee advert angry with you?"

They turned to view the massive electronic billboards surrounding the arrivals hall. Every screen flickered slightly, showing the same advert. A woman standing on a hill of red flowers. Her expression angry but smug at the same time. The screens flickered again, showing a different version of the same advert. The woman was closer, her arms folded and her expression cruelly self-satisfied. The display flickered again, yet another version of the advert appeared and now the woman's face was filling half the screen. She smiled too widely, her teeth a little too narrow for her mouth.

Hilde walked to Duo and clapped a hand on his shoulder. "What the fuck is this, Duo?"

Duo sucked on a tooth. "An interdimensional parasite. We think it feeds on people. Causes time skips."

The screen flickered again and now the woman was making an exaggerated look of 'who, me?', her hand pressed against her chest.

Quatre shook his head. "I thought I destroyed you."

Another flickers, and now the advert changed completely. Gone was the red sky, setting sun and hill of red flowers. The woman was standing on a beach, wide sunglasses on and arms outstretched. A bright grin on her face. The slogan to the side read: _You freed me._

"Duo." Hilde pinched the bridge of her nose, "Duo, we're Preventers. We _prevent _things like this from happening."

"How am I responsible for all of this?" Duo screwed up his face and violently gestured at the billboards.

"Actually, you might in fact be responsible for all of it…" Howard said, causing them all to turn and face him. He held up Naomi's phone. "She hasn't sent a reply… My email really has just arrived." He held it towards Duo. "What do you think, kid?"

Duo frowned and took the phone. He shot a glanced over his shoulder at the billboard. It had changed again, and the woman was now in close up. Her hand cupped her chin, and she gazed down with a fond expression, raising a cocktail glass with her other hand. The slogan now read: _Just enough power left for one more._

"Is she…" Trowa tilted his head in confusion. "Are you helping us?"

"Quatre!" Outraged, Dorothy snapped her head towards him, "Did you try to kill the nice interdimensional parasite that was just trying to help you?"

"It's a psychic vampire that tried to kill us all." Quatre rolled his eyes, "Of course _you'd_ get on with her."

"What are you going to write?" Heero looked at Duo. "You could stop all of this from happening."

"Did she try and kill you specifically?" Dorothy was wondering out loud to Quatre, before turning on a heel and walking away, "I rather like her style."

Her retreating back missed the hard, withering look Quatre gave her, "Of course you would, Dorothy. You've got so much in common. I wonder, any relation?"

Duo gazed at Heero for a long moment, then at Quatre, Wufei and then finally Heero again. This time his gaze lingered for a long, long time. He nodded, "Yeah… I could stop it. And then, you woulda gotten back from your mission, and we woulda gone to the gym as usual, and then …" He stepped forward and tapped a command on the phone. He walked forward, holding his arm up and pulled Heero into a kiss. Surprised, Heero heard a camera shutter sound and grinned into the kiss. Duo beamed as he broke free.

"We wouldn't have this new photo of us on holiday."

Heero smiled broadly, and cupped Duo's cheek softly. He leaned in for another kiss. They broke apart when they heard Sally and Noin whoop loudly over Zechs' unflattering groans.

"All right!" Une shouted at them all. "I think we've all made quite enough of a scene!" She raised her arms at the Preventers gathered around. "Let's move out!"

* * *

Duo reluctantly returned to Naomi's phone and began replying to the email. He pressed send, catching sight of Quatre and Trowa as he waited. Trowa had discreetly grabbed Quatre's hand as they walked off to retrieve the bags. He smiled and emailed himself the photo of him and Heero, then deleted it from Naomi's phone.

A second email popped up from Howard.

He bent his head to reply again. "Tell him not to come if he is not a scientist…" he muttered, before pressing send, and finally handed back Naomi's phone. Naomi looped her arm around Howard's and walked away with him.

Duo sighed and reached into his pocket; then held his hand out to Heero. A small ball of crumpled paper was in the middle of his hand. "Hey. Thanks for this."

Heero looked down, recognising the wrinkled note. "I'd hoped you wouldn't find it."

"But if the situation exists…" Duo smiled fondly, "I'm glad you were prepared for it."

* * *

Riko raised her eyebrows at Wufei and whispered, "Did you know they were dating?"

He shook his head thoughtfully, then regarded the billboard. The advert was just a beach now. The woman was gone.

"Huh," He heard Riko say, "That's weird. What do you think it means?"

"I think we've let loose something terrible, and yet… set ourselves up for a neat sequel." Wufei said in a bored tone. When Riko blinked at him in puzzlement, he only shook his head.

"What does that mean?"

Wufei closed his eyes and pinched his nose. "It means I've been spending too much time with Maxwell." He shook his head and looked at her. He thought for a moment, before asking, "Do you want to get some food?"

"Boy, I could murder a pizza right now."

Wufei blinked and turned, offering her his arm. "Do you have a favourite?"

Riko held up her other hand in an obvious gesture. "Does pizza come in any other flavour than meat feast?"

Wufei patted her arm, "Don't worry, Heero will know where to find a good one."

"Oh, cool!"

* * *

**Notes:**

You know, technically this is the end. But there's a chapter left. Thank you so much for joining me. I'd like to give a shout out to all my lovely commenters - Hikaru, Tone – you've really been amazing, thank you so much! Finally, big shout-out to my beta, Bluegoo. One day I'll earn enough semi-colon points to justify my fluff. Thank you so much for everything.


	24. Always thought I was bad

**Disclaimer**: hahahahahahaha… I'm so old. You know the score.

**Notes**: And then it was all over. Thank you for staying with me.

**Song**: Steven Universe – Love Like You

* * *

_If I could begin to do  
Something that does right by you  
I would do about anything  
I would even learn how to love_

_When I see the way you look  
Shaken by how long it took  
I could do about anything  
I could even learn how to love like you_

* * *

**Eldritch Holiday**

By Doctor Megalomania

* * *

_I always thought I might be bad  
Now I'm sure that it's true  
'cause I think you're so good  
And I'm nothing like you_

* * *

**Epilogue** \- Always thought I might be bad

* * *

Quatre watched the rain failing. He was sat in a cafe, a coffee steaming next to him. He was waiting for Trowa.

They'd agreed to meet here before heading off for the thing at Duo's. His phone buzzed on the table, and he glanced down. Rashid was checking that Quatre was okay. Quatre smiled as he texted back. **It's just Trowa.**

_**We can speak to him for you. **_

**I think I can handle it.** Quatre sent a rolling eyes emoji.

_**We could make him disappear if you like. **_

Quatre laughed, and quickly took a sip of his coffee. He texted back, **I'm always glad you work for me, and not against me.**

He took a breath and tucked the phone away.

The cafe was just opposite the Preventers branch that Trowa worked at. Quatre just enjoyed watching people and took the time to observe the various agents going to and from the building.

He was very early. He'd wanted time to think about what he was going to say. Since getting back from Happiness, Trowa had been attentive and keen to make up for the time they'd lost. Quatre still wasn't sure if he wanted to get back into a relationship with him, but Trowa had shown him a different kind of person than the bitter teenager he'd been. This Trowa was comfortable in his own skin; he could be himself and didn't feel the need to hide away so much…

A taxi pulled up near the entrance of the Preventers building, and a woman with familiar blazing orange hair got out. She pulled up her hood against the downpour and paid the cab fare. Tightening the rucksack she had on her back, she turned and looked around. Riko took her phone out of her pocket and peered at it for a moment, before answering it. She looked around as she spoke, and Quatre - more out of old habit than anything else - raised his cup to hide the bottom half of his face.

Finished with her phone call, she now stood still and waited.

She didn't have to wait long before Wufei walked out in his smart uniform, opening a large black umbrella as he exited the cover of the Preventers headquarters. He lightly jogged down the stairs, and made sure Riko was covered by the umbrella. She took down her hood as he held it over here, running a hand through her orange hair. He motioned her backpack and Riko shook her head. Instead, she took his arm and leaned up to press a kiss against his cheek.

Quatre opened his heart a little, and smiled broadly at the joy Wufei seemed to radiate. The couple started walking down the street, Wufei leaning in to say something that made Riko throw back her head and laugh…

Quatre returned to his coffee, cupping the still-hot ceramic. His phone buzzed.

_**I'm finished. Meet you at the cafe?**_

Quatre felt warmth and knew it was his own feeling. **Yes. I'm already here. What do you want?**

_**Tea please. See you in about 10 minutes. **_

Quatre was taking the tea back to his table when he spotted Trowa exiting the Preventers building. Trowa was in a casual suit and a long raincoat. He had a small holdall with him. He paused under the cover of the building for a moment, to stare mournfully at the heavy rain. When he looked across the street, he spotted Quatre in the cafe and waved.

Even the short jog across the street was enough to drench Trowa's hair; he slipped into the chair opposite Quatre, wrapping his hands around the steaming cup. "Thank you for this!" He said gratefully, "I can't believe how much it's raining. The weather was reported as light showers."

Quatre laughed lightly, "Well it could have been averaging out ... it would seem half the time it's been no rain, the rest of the time it's been a monsoon."

"Hah." Bemused, Trowa took a sip of his tea and nodded. "You remembered. It's perfect. Thank you!"

Waving a hand, Quatre shrugged. "Your order isn't complicated." He fiddled with his mug for a moment. "Thank you for agreeing to meet me."

Trowa swallowed, "I think it was a good idea; I doubt we'll get much of a chance to talk this evening." He paused for a moment, glancing out of the window. "Though, since you're in town anyway, I thought I'd invite you to breakfast? I've got the late shift."

"Where'd you like to go?"

"I thought maybe… my place." Trowa looked at Quatre with steady green eyes. "I thought I'd make your favourite."

"I've never figured out your secret for roasted stone fruit." Quatre rested his chin on a hand as he sipped, "If you don't mind, I'd love to join you for breakfast."

"I'll show you when I cook, if you'd like." Trowa offered, "Then you can make it any time you like."

"Or you can keep your secrets." Quatre said, "And maybe we could do breakfast – If you don't mind making my favourite all the time - when I'm here."

Trowa fiddled with his tea bag's label for a moment, "I'd rather you didn't need an excuse to have breakfast with me."

He swallowed.

"In fact, I was rather hoping I could perhaps..." He looked up at Quatre shyly, "Convince you … to stay the night with me. Save you a trip across town, and we'd have the chance to finish this conversation. I still have a spare room."

"Save me a trip across town? Now who needs excuses?" Quatre laughed. "So, breakfast and a sleepover? My, Trowa, aren't you pulling out all the stops?"

"If you'd like me on my knees, I will happily do it." Trowa said, his voice unexpectedly thick. "Anything."

Quatre blinked in surprise. He glanced down and shook his head. "I don't need you to beg." He regarded at Trowa steadily. "You don't need to do anything."

"You said you weren't sure."

"I'm not."

"What do I need to do?" Trowa leaned forward, "What do I need to say?"

Quatre reached forward and touched Trowa's hand. "You don't need ..." He took a breath, "No, that's not true. You need to tell me what I need to do differently; tell me what I need to change. I can't risk..." He touched his chest, "I can't risk feeling like that again."

"Nothing. I was wrong."

Quatre held off the urge to scoff, but couldn't help bitterly bringing up Trowa's past accusations. "I wasn't enough. I was too clingy."

"I ..." Trowa closed his eyes, shook his head hard. "No. I wasn't truthful with you. I didn't…" He searched for the right word. "Appreciate what I had. It's all my fault."

Quatre sat back. "We're not getting anywhere." He turned back to the window. Heero was stood across the street under his own umbrella, tapping away at his phone. He nodded once, and then walked purposefully towards the bus stop. Quatre felt his phone buzz in his pocket. Pulling his phone out, he snorted at the text message from Heero:

_**You said you wished you'd told him more.**_

Trowa made an impatient noise which drew Quatre's attention. He was scowling at his own phone. Trowa met Quatre's eyes and shrugged. "Heero. He's reminding me I said I'd bring beer later." He grudgingly glanced out the window, but Heero was long gone. "He also reminded me that Jules is always an option. Bastard."

Quatre leaned forward, laying his hands palm-up on the table. Trowa stared at them for a long time, before hesitantly slipping his own hands into Quatre's. He tilted his head, quizzically. Quatre nodded and closed his hands around Trowa. "I love you. I still love you. I don't think I ever stopped loving you."

The hope that filled Trowa was hard to ignore.

Quatre swallowed and nodded.

"But I would rather love you from a distance than risk losing your love again. If we're going to do this again, I want to know when I do something wrong and I don't want you to pretend that there's nothing I can't do better."

Trowa thought about it for a long moment, his eyes fastened at their joined hands. He tightened grip, his expression determined. "That sounds like a good idea. I... I adore you. This thing we had, nothing I've had since has ever been the same." He nodded, "It's always been—"

"Hollow? Like the version of roasted stone fruit I keep making for myself? It's all the same ingredients, but really, it doesn't quite taste the same." Quatre nodded slowly. "Yeah."

"I mean, if you want me to teach you—"

Quatre smiled. "Yes. I think I do."

"Then there's only one more thing to do."

Trowa got up, not letting go of Quatre's hands. He bent down on one knee, and stroked his thumbs over Quatre's knuckles. "I'd like to learn how to love like you." He smiled at Quatre adoringly, "I don't think I could ever love you from a distance."

Quatre leaned forward, freeing a hand and brushing Trowa's wayward hair aside. They touched foreheads as Trowa sighed happily.

"Thank you for forgiving me."

* * *

Duo hummed to himself as he arranged the living room. He'd hoovered and shifted the seating around to fit as many people as possible. He reviewed the table; the drinks and snacks next to the clipboards with paper and pencils snapped to them. He counted them again, then took a moment to peer around the room. His phone buzzed in his pocket. Pulling it out, he saw a message from Wufei:

_**OK if I bring a +1?**_

Duo blinked and tilted his head. **Always,** he responded with an eye rolling emoji. He was about to put his phone back in his pocket when Wufei texted back again.

_**Just checking. Don't be weird.**_

"Why would I be weird?" Duo asked himself and sent a thumbs up to Wufei before shuffling into the kitchen and put on the kettle on. As he began laying out mugs, he noticed with dismay the rain was now hammering against the window. Duo shrugged and carried on setting out the things he needed to make tea and coffee.

His doorbell rang and Duo checked at the clock in his kitchen. "Twenty minutes early? Hmm. Princess doesn't do fashionably late…" He walked to the door and opened it, smiling broadly. "Hi Relena! You made it! Hey, Dorothy!" He gestured into his home, "Welcome to the Maxwell Institute of Surviving Horror Movies… your test papers and reading material stands at the ready!"

"I thought this was a bad movie night." Dorothy replied dryly, closing her umbrella as both she and Relena stepped in.

"It is." Duo chuckled as he took their coats, "But I'm also gonna teach ya how to survive your average Attack of the Killer Whatever."

Relena laughed, "I look forward to it." She looked around expectantly, "Is Heero not in?"

"You're early; he'll arrive just on time." Duo walked past her. "Tea?"

"Please." Relena glanced around, following him. "I'm surprised to see that this apartment doesn't have as many gadgets as Heero normally likes to have." She laughed softly, "If I hadn't put my foot down, he would have automated the blinds."

"Oh? Hmm." Duo stepped into the kitchen and made her a cup of tea. He was pouring the milk when he paused, "Oh yeah. He has at his apartment!"

"His apartment?" Relena tilted her head as she leaned against a counter. She took the tea from him, "Thanks."

"Yeah." Duo snorted, "He's even got a Roomba!"

"You mean," Dorothy leaned against the doorway to the kitchen, "Heero doesn't - in fact - live with you?"

Duo chuckled, "No. We're not moving in together for a while! We've only been dating for like, two months."

Relena laughed, waving at Dorothy. "You mean, you've only gone public in the last two months." She turned back to him with a smile. "I mean we all know you've been dating for at least three years!"

Duo cocked his head at her in confusion, "Uh… no, we've been dating for two months."

Relena scrunched up her nose. "Are you sure?" She wheedled. "You have a regular date twice a month and Sally says you go to the gym together almost every morning to watch each other work out."

"Uh…" Duo glanced at Dorothy, who was gazing at Relena with an increasingly smug smile. He shrugged at Relena helplessly, "No. We really were just friends right up until two months ago."

"Well, poot." Relena put her cup down and nodded at Dorothy. "I'll get my purse."

"Oh honey, I can take an IOU."

The doorbell went again and Duo ducked between the two. He opened the door to Sally.

"Hi!" He blinked, and realised she was alone. "Wufei not with you?"

"Nah, he had to go somewhere." Sally shoved a hand into her pocket after she took down her umbrella.

Duo peered around, "And what about... Uh." His mind went blank. "Uh…" he clicked his fingers twice, "Um."

"Yeah, no." Sally shook her head as she took off her boots. "Don't worry about remembering him. I kicked his ass to the kerb."

"Aw, did the skeevy bastard your friends all warned you about not work out?"

"Bastard thought Jules was right to send dick pics. Suggested I'd enjoy it."

"Oh." Duo made a face, "Ew."

Sally peeled off her coat and sniffed. "Plenty of fucking fish in the sea." She noticed the other coats and grinned at Duo, "So queen of the world arrived early. Sweet, she owes me some money!"

"Yeah, and she lost a bet because of you!" Dorothy shouted from the kitchen, laughing as Relena made a shushing noise.

Duo looked at Sally who adopted the most unconvincing innocent expression, "I know nothing." She nudged him with her elbow and winked. "So, how about Trowa and Quatre? Are they coming tonight for educational bad movies?"

"Yeah, and they might be arriving together." Duo winked back at her. "Because they've been spending an awful lotta time together."

"Ooo," Sally pulled out her phone and started texting. "Tea in the kitchen, yeah?"

"Yeah." Duo chuckled as he followed her.

A little later the doorbell went again and Duo welcomed both Trowa and Quatre in from the rain. Quatre nodded to Abdul, who had waited until they were both indoors before running off with his large umbrella back to the waiting car. Trowa attentively held his hand out for Quatre to balance with as he toed off his shoes. Quatre helped Trowa to take off his raincoat and hung both of them up. They both accepted a hot drink from Duo, and settled down together. Trowa sat on a beanbag in front of the armchair Quatre curled up on. Duo handed them a clipboard each, and was about to explain it when the bell went again.

Sally laughed, "Okay, I'll take over – I'm the teacher's assistant!"

Duo chuckled as he ran to the door. Riko was on the doorstep under the umbrella that Wufei held. Wufei was facing away, with one hand holding the umbrella; one hand stuffed in his pocket. He narrowed his eyes at Duo and mouthed_ 'Not one word.'_

Riko smiled, lightly blushing as she held out a bottle of wine. "Hi, I was in town and Wufei said it was okay?"

Duo took the bottle and smiled widely. "Honey, you're one of us now. You're always welcome!" He gave her a hug and ushered her in. "You're a graduate of the Maxwell institute, anyway!"

"I'm…" She glanced at Wufei, "What?"

Duo smirked as Wufei shook off the umbrella and snarled quietly, "Stop being weird."

Wufei moved to guide Riko into Duo's apartment, his hand on the small of her back. Duo closed the door, chuckling as he heard the room behind him erupt with quiet cheers and Wufei snapping, "All of you stop being weird!"

He was about to join them, when he heard keys and the lock begin to turn. He turned and opened the door for Heero, who was laden with pizza boxes.

"Sorry, I'm late." Heero apologised, nodding in thanks as Duo took the pizza boxes from him.

"Oh, yeah, you're like a whole –" Duo made a show of checking his watch "– one minute later than the specified time!"

Heero nodded and took off his coat and shoes. "Will you forgive me?"

Duo took stock of the first pizza; it was meat feast, his favourite. He smiled at Heero and put the pizza down on the floor so he could wrap his arms around Heero's shoulders. "Maybe if you kiss me."

Heero smirked and clenched his fist mockingly, "Oh, won't someone spare me the hardship?"

"Alas, it's time to pay up." Duo said sadly as he dived in.

They were lost in the kiss until they heard Zechs cursing. Heero pulled back from Duo and stared around, confused until he realised Zechs' voice was tinny. He zeroed in on the door to Duo's living room and heard Duo curse as he did the same. Dorothy stood in the corridor, her phone held up. Sally was lying on the floor with her phone held up. Riko was peeking with Relena around the edge of the doorway, swiftly disappearing as Duo moved to pick up the pizza. Heero folded his arms and shook his head at both Dorothy and Sally. Sally held up her hands, "I'm just taking a photo for Noin."

"I'm live streaming for Zechs," Tapping quickly twice, Dorothy turned her phone to show Heero. Zechs looked pissed off.

Noin leaned into view, waving. "Hi Heero!"

"Hi, what's his problem?"

Noin laughed, "He's lost every goddamn wager going because he bet against you and Duo getting together." Zechs handed his phone to Noin who followed him as he walked into their kitchen to grab a beer. "Even Une didn't take that bet!"

Dorothy rolled her eyes, "I just can't believe he didn't even enter the sweepstakes." She walked off with her phone. Heero shook his head and joined Duo in the kitchen. He was leaning against the countertop, his blush charmingly slow to fade.

Heero moved to stand in front of him and effortlessly lifted Duo up to sit on the counter. Heero settled himself between Duo's legs. He took a moment, running his hands up Duo's legs to wrap around his waist. "We could just escape through the window."

Duo laughed quietly. "What and miss Wufei try and pretend he's totally not sleeping with Riko? Nah…"

Duo chuckled and wrapped his arms around Heero's neck, leaning in close. He kissed Heero lightly, "Happy bad movie night…"

Heero smiled. "Uh huh…" He leaned in very close, his lips brushing Duo's as he reached with one hand to flick the light switch off.

Duo's laugh was well worth plunging the kitchen into darkness.

* * *

_When I see the way you look_

_Shaken by how long it took_

_I could do about anything_

_I could even learn how to love like you_

* * *

**(The end.)**


End file.
